The Darkest Hours
by AlElizabeth
Summary: AU Set Season 1. When John fails to return after a hunt Dean drives to Stanford to enlist his brother's help in finding their father. There is one problem though: Sam isn't in California. He's disappeared. Chapter 8 now posted!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Dean Winchester turned up the volume as Black Sabbath's 'Glory Ride' came on the radio. He had the windows rolled down so he could enjoy the warm California breeze and the hot California girls.

No wonder you wanted to come here, Sammy; Dean thought with a slight smile, it's sun, surf and babes all the time.

Dean tried to imagine his brother on a surfboard and laughed at the mental image of Sam in Hawaiian-style swim shorts, trying to stay balanced on choppy Pacific water and looking like a complete dork in the process.

Dean's good mood faltered somewhat. He wasn't in California for a holiday. He was on a mission. He needed his brother's help.

John Winchester had gone missing three weeks earlier with no rhyme or reason, without saying anything to his oldest son. At first Dean hadn't been worried- his father went on solo hunts all the time and sometimes they took longer than expected- but when John hadn't returned any of his son's phone calls and the days began to pile up, Dean just knew something was wrong.

Dean wasn't sure what had happened to his father but he was certain that Sam would want to know that John was MIA. Sam had a right to know. Dean just hoped he could convince his brother to help him find their Dad- Dean knew he couldn't do it on his own. He wanted his brother by his side.

A myriad of emotions bubbled up inside of Dean- worry and fear about his father and nervousness about seeing his brother for the first time in four years- but he turned up the radio's volume to eardrum-rupturing levels and kept an eye on the street signs that would show him the way to Stanford.

Dean had stayed away from Sam for almost four years now- it hurt like hell to do so- because he respected his brother's privacy. Although Dean did not agree with Sam leaving for college, he knew anything he said would fall on deaf ears. Sam had made his decision and Dean would just have to live with that. It wasn't as though Sam would be gone forever exactly; his younger brother wanted to see them again and Dean could wait, however impatiently. Now though, Dean was going to see Sam whether his little brother liked it or not. Their father hadn't been seen in nearly three weeks- by _anyone _in the hunting community- and that set Dean's stomach curdling. Sam would just have to suck it up and act like a decent person because Dean wasn't above reminding his sibling who was boss if Sam was to conveniently forget that all-important detail.

John had also stayed away from Sam for almost four years but for reasons entirely different from his eldest son's. The ex-Marine was known for holding grudges- he'd been seeking the same mysterious, murderous entity for almost twenty-three years now- and no one was exempt from his black list, not even his sons. Even if a hunt took John and Dean close to Palo Alto or even California in general, John would try and pawn it off on another hunter or, failing that, immerse himself in the case so deeply that Dean wasn't sure his father was ever going to come up for air. The night Sam had told John about college, Dean had been almost positive his father was going to resort to less-than diplomatic measures to keep Sam from leaving. The argument that had ensued blew every previous one out of the water, made them seem like mere tiffs compared to the Atom bomb that Sam had dropped on them. Dean felt bad that Sam had left on such shitty terms with their father. John was only worried about Sam; he just didn't quite know how to show it in a non-overbearing, non-militaristic way. But John Winchester never forgave and he didn't forget and for almost four years acted like Sam didn't even exist.

Well, things are about to change; Dean told himself. He'd talk to his brother and together he and Sam would find their Dad, and oh boy, wouldn't John be surprised to see his youngest son!

"They can tear each other's heads off once I know Dad's okay," Dean murmured as he drove into the Stanford campus, searching for a visitor's parking lot.

_W_

The buildings all looked the same!

Everywhere Dean looked there was another lecture hall with peach-coloured stucco walls and a red clay roof.

How does anyone find their way around this maze? Dean wondered as he sought out the Registration office.

After about twenty minutes of fruitless searching and feeling like a moron, Dean gave in and asked for directions.

The Registration office was air conditioned and almost chilly compared to the warmth outside. Dean didn't even wait to get in line, he just flashed a fake FBI badge and all the co-eds moved out of the way, some more nervously than others.

"How may I help you?" the elderly woman at the desk asked, peering over her glasses at Dean. She had fluffy white hair and was wearing a dark blue blazer over a white blouse.

"Can you tell me where Samuel Winchester lives? Is he on-campus or off?"

The woman looked incredulous for a moment before Dean showed her his badge.

Typing swiftly into the computer, the elderly lady pursed her lips.

"I don't have any record of anyone by that name in the files," she told Dean; "He was sent an acceptance letter but never attended any classes."

Dean's brow furrowed and his heart skipped a beat, "Are you sure? Maybe there's been a mistake."

The woman shook her head, "I'm sorry, sir. Perhaps you have the wrong university."

Dean bit his lip. He couldn't have come to the wrong school. Sam had told them he was going to Stanford.

"Sir, are you alright? You're a little pale," the older woman asked in alarm at the rapid change in Dean's complexion.

"Oh, yeah, just not used to this heat, you know?" Dean muttered.

If Sam never came here then where did he go?

"Is there anything else I can help you with?" The woman wondered, ignoring the line of students now gathered behind Dean.

"Uh, no," the young hunter shook his head, "Thanks for your time."

Dean walked down the hallway toward the elevators numbly.

Sam has to be here, Dean told himself, I just know it. There's been some mistake.

Stepping out of the climate-controlled building and into the California heat, Dean squinted his eyes and peered around. If anyone knew where his brother could be, the student body would.

Dean stalked down the asphalt-paved walkway and stopped at the first building he saw that had kids pouring out of it. He leaned against the wall, beside the door and flipped through his wallet, finding what he needed within seconds.

"Excuse me," Dean approached a trio of young women who looked to be around Sam's age- maybe they even had classes with him- and put on his most defenseless expression, "I'm looking for my brother, have you seen him around here?"

Dean held up a faded, folded photograph of his brother. The picture had been taken in Sam's freshman year at a high school he couldn't remember the name of. His brother sat against the generic blue background, smiling shyly, his bangs almost obscuring his green eyes, wearing Dean's hand-me-downs because money had been tight that year.

Two of the girls shook their heads and moved on but the third smiled gently at Dean and carefully took the picture from him.

"It's kind of old but it's the most recent one I have," Dean explained, "He's kind of hard to miss though, what with that mop on his head and being as tall as a redwood."

The young woman chuckled softly at Dean's words. She had wavy blonde hair and blue eyes.

"What's his name?" she asked and handed the photo back to Dean.

"Sam," Dean told her, "Sam Winchester."

The girl's expression turned sympathetic, "I'm sorry, I haven't seen anyone who looks like him around campus."

Dean's heart fell into his stomach, "Are you sure?"

The young woman nodded, "I'm sorry."

Dean shrugged, "Nothing you can do."

The girl reached out and placed her hand on Dean's arm, "I hope you find him."

The young hunter smiled sadly.

"Come on, Jess!" the girl turned at the sound of her name and with one glance back at Dean, ran to catch up with her friends.

Dean walked slowly back to where he had parked the car, ignoring the warm breeze and bright sunlight. The day had suddenly turned dark on him.

He leaned against the driver's side door of the Impala and heaved a sorrowful sigh. Dean passed a hand over his eyes and squinted.

Dean lifted the photograph of a fourteen-year old Sam close to his face, "Where the hell are you, Sammy?"

Dean didn't think his brother had gone to a different university as the lady from the Registration office had suggested. Sam would have told them. Besides, Dean had seen the Stanford acceptance letter- it offered a full ride- and knew his brother wouldn't pass that up for anything.

Carefully folding the picture back up and returning it to his wallet, Dean unlocked the door to his baby and slid into the driver's seat.

Turning the key in the ignition, Dean listened to the low familiar rumble of the Impala's engine before grabbing his cell phone from his pocket.

Dean scrolled down the contact list before hitting his father's number and waited for the voice mail to come on.

"This John Winchester; if this is an emergency, call my son Dean. If this is Dean, leave a message."

"Dad, its Dean… again. Listen, I don't know what you're doing or where you are but you _have _to call me back as soon as you get this. Sammy's gone. And I mean _gone. _I'm in Palo Alto now and nobody's seen him at the school for… oh God… he never even made it to any of his classes. I know you and Sam didn't part ways on the best of terms but you have to agree with me that this doesn't feel-"

Dean was cut off when the length of time to leave a message ran out and he swore out loud.

Dean grumbled and found the second most important person on his Who-To-Call-When-Sam's-In-Trouble list.

"Singer Salvage," Bobby's gruff tones greeted the young hunter and Dean almost smiled.

"Hey Bobby," Dean answered, trying not to sound of the verge of panic.

"You find your Daddy yet, boy?" Bobby demanded, "'Cause I call first dibbs when it comes to kickin' his ass back to Kansas when he finally decides to grace us with his presence."

Dean chuckled softly but shook his head, "No, Dad hasn't turned up… and now I have another problem… I drove to California to get Sammy, see if he could help me find Dad and… well… Sam's not here."

"Dean? Son? What are you talking about?" Bobby's voice became full of concern and Dean could almost imagine the grizzled hunter taking off his baseball cap to run his fingers through his thinning hair in agitation.

"S-Sam never m-made it to Stanford," Dean stuttered, bile rising in his throat at the thought that something had happened to his baby brother while he wasn't around to protect him.

"Dean," Bobby's voice turned stern, "Are you sure that Sam in trouble? Maybe he just went to a different school."

Dean shook his head, "Sammy wouldn't do that… he didn't do that. He'd have told me if he changed schools… he'd want me to know in case… something happened. He was going to Stanford! Not Harvard or Yale or some university on the moon!"

"Is this what your gut's telling you?" Bobby asked, "That something _did _get to Sam and it's not just that he transferred and forgot to let you and your Daddy know?"

Dean sucked in a breath, "Yeah Bobby, I know that something's wrong here… I can just feel it."

Bobby paused for a moment, thinking of how he was going to phrase his next question, "You haven't heard from Sam since he left for college, right? And that was, what, three and a half, four years ago?"

"God, why didn't I call him? Why did I tell myself to let the kid have some privacy? Fuck privacy! I'd have called Sam every day, every hour of every day if I knew he'd vanish like a fart in the wind!" Dean exclaimed angrily and slammed a fist down on the Impala's steering wheel.

"Sorry baby," Dean apologized to the car, "I'm not mad at you."

"Son," Bobby said softly, "I know you don't wanna hear this and Lord knows I don't wanna even think about it… but… with Sam being missing for so long… there's a good chance that he's dead."

Dean practically growled at the older hunter, "No he isn't Bobby! Don't say that! I'd know if Sam was dead! I'd know! He's not dead! He's alive somewhere!"

"What's your next step?" Bobby asked, thinly veiling the real statement underneath: I hope you're right.

"Research," Dean looked up through the Impala's windshield, "Hours and hours of research until I find Sammy and whatever or whoever took him."

"That's what I thought," Bobby said, "You come on up to my place and I'll lend you a hand. Maybe we'll even get a visit from your old man if we're lucky."

Dean wasn't even thinking about his AWOL father- all he cared about was his brother.

"Thanks Bobby," Dean whispered, "I'll see you in a couple of days."

"I'll get a head start on the research," the grizzled hunter informed Dean.

He heard Bobby sigh on the other end of the line, "looks like coffee's going to be my new best friend for a while."

Dean couldn't help but chuckle but his mood immediately dried up as soon as he closed his phone and slipped it back into his pocket.

Dean started the car and pulled out of the parking spot, his eyes glancing at the empty passenger seat where his brother should have been sitting.

The young hunter turned on the radio and patted the dashboard comfortingly when The Hollies' 'He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother' began playing.

"I know girl," Dean murmured to the Impala, "I miss him too."

He blinked his eyes for a moment but then steeled himself, "Don't worry Sammy, I'm coming for ya. Wherever you are, I'll find you. I'm not giving up on you, baby brother."

**Author's Note:**

**1. Edited by BerserkerHellHound.**

**2. Please update! I'd love to hear from you!**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Sam startled from sleep, momentarily confused as to what had woken him before he heard someone crying. Closing his eyes again, the young man put his hands over his ears and tried to block out the sound.

Almost unconsciously, Sam began to hum Metallica, the familiar rhythms comforting.

The heavy metal songs reminded Sam of his brother and before he knew it, tears were dripping down his face and onto the floor.

Sam curled into a tight ball, his knees drawn up to his chest, his hands still covering his ears and bit back the sobs threatening to escape.

Sam's heart ached for his older brother. He tried to remember the last thing he'd said to Dean but found himself drawing a blank. He couldn't get his sibling's hurt, disappointed expression out of his head. The betrayal in Dean's eyes when Sam told him he was going away to college haunted the young man's waking mind.

Sam shivered and coughed, tasting salt on his lips. He wiped his eyes with his shirtsleeve and gave a shuddering sigh. Drawing his blanket tighter around himself, Sam knew it wouldn't really help the chills but needed the comfort anyway.

Sam stared out through the bars of the cage as his mind drifted, thinking about when he was younger and all he needed was his Dad and big brother to make him feel safe and secure:

_"Dee," Sam mumbled, tugging at the blankets covering his brother. _

_ Dean rolled over and his eyes slid open, "What is it, Sammy?"_

_ "I had a bad dream," the four-year old complained, his green eyes wide with fear._

_ Dean sat up and scooted back, "C'mere kiddo."_

_ Excitedly,_ _the younger boy scrambled onto the creaky motel bed beside his brother. Dean laid an arm over his sibling's middle as Sam cuddled up to him. Sam closed his eyes and sighed happily. He knew that Dean would never let anything bad happen to him._

Tears welled up in Sam's eyes again and slipped down his face silently.

_"Hey you assholes! Pick on someone your own size!" Dean shouted at the trio of bullies. _

_ The Winchesters had just arrived at a new school and Sam had become the target of a group of older boys whose favourite past-time was picking on the younger students._

_ Dean stared down his fellow seventh graders- who were from his own class- and silently dared them to try him._

_ Sam stood behind his brother, the knees of his jeans and his hands covered in mud and scraped, hoping that a teacher wouldn't appear._

_ "If you ever so much as look at my brother in a way I don't like, I'll be the last thing you ever see," Dean snarled and chucked the rock he'd picked up at the bullies, scattering them._

_ "You okay, Sammy?" Dean turned to his brother and brushed the dirt off his knees, peering worriedly at his scraped hands._

_ Sam bit his lip and nodded. He was sure the bullies were not going to bother him again. That, at least was some comfort until their father had them move again._

Dad, Sam thought sadly, where did we go wrong? Why did things change between us?

_The motel room door opened slowly but Sam was ready. He crept forward, giggling while his brother watched from the end of his bed._

_ John Winchester stepped inside, looking tired, but smiled when he saw his boys. _

_ "Daddy!" Sam cried and held out his chubby arms so that his father could pick him up._

_ "Sammy!" John scooped up his youngest son and grinned when the little boy wrapped his arms around his neck._

_ "I missed ya," Sam mumbled, his face nuzzled against the shoulder of his father's leather coat._

_ "I missed you too, son," John smiled and set his little boy down._

_ Dean hopped off the bed and made his way over to his father and brother._

_ "Did you bring me back anything?" Sam asked, looking up at John shyly._

_ "Sam!" Dean exclaimed but John just shook his head and laughed._

_ "I did run into someone and they said they'd like to come home with me," John hunkered down and pulled something from the inside of his jacket._

_ Sam grinned broadly when his Dad presented him with a stuffed teddy bear. _

_ "I can have him?" Sam asked, hesitating a little before reaching out for the toy._

_ "Of course, Sammy," John said and handed his son the bear._

_ Dean smiled as Sam hugged the toy to his chest. _

_ "I'm gonna call you Charlie," Sam whispered to the bear before grinning up at his father, "Thank you, Daddy."_

Sam couldn't remember what had happened to Charlie… he knew he'd carried that bear with him everywhere he went for ages before deciding he was too old for toys (around the same time he learned the truth about monsters) and then Charlie had been stuffed into the bottom of his duffel bag.

Sam wondered if his father had taken Charlie, thinking his son didn't want him anymore.

_"Keep both eyes open, Sam," John instructed his son as Sam pointed the Taurus at the beer bottles lined up along the top of the fence. Dean stood a few feet away from them, shooting down his own beer bottles with ease._

_ "Relax, Sam," John laid a hand on Sam's shoulder and the boy looked up at his father._

_ They were in the forested area behind Bobby Singer's Salvage Yard. It was quiet and secluded enough so that John could teach his sons the skills needed for hunting, in peace._

_ Sam returned his attention to the line of green and brown bottles sitting twenty yards ahead of him. He took a deep breath, steadied his hand on the gun- the pistol felt too big in his small hand- and fired. _

_ The recoil startled the boy and he stumbled back. The shot went wild, missing the bottles and streaking into the forest._

_ Sam's shoulders slumped, "I can't do it, Dad."_

_ John's eyebrows knitted, "Just keep practicing, Sammy. You'll get the hang of it."_

_ Sam sighed and looked at the gun in his hand._

_ John grimaced and ran a hand through his hair. _

_ "Try again, son," John suggested and watched as Sam lifted the Taurus again._

_ "Eyes open," he reminded the boy, "Even breaths."_

_ Sam did as his father instructed, his gaze aimed straight ahead._

_ The boy squeezed the trigger again, this time holding his ground as the recoil jerked his hand back and grinned when one of the beer bottles exploded in a shower of green glass._

_ "I did it!" Sam cried out happily, "Did you see, Dad? I did it!"_

_ John smiled, "You sure did, Sammy. Good job, son."_

_ Sam sighed happily when his father patted his shoulder, "What do you say we take a break and have some hot cocoa with Bobby?"_

Sam's head shot up when he heard the unmistakable sound of footsteps on the stairs at the far side of the large basement. Scrambling into a sitting position, he scooted to the back of the cage and hopefully out of sight.

The young man held his breath as he watched a quartet of vampires descend the steps, three of them continuing across the room while the fourth remained by the staircase, ready to hit the buttons that controlled the doors to the cages.

Sam regarded the vampires fearfully. His anger had burnt out long ago and its ashes had been smothered by the icy terror that now froze his heart. He watched as the other prisoners cowered apprehensively into the corners of their cages, eyes wide with fear and breathing ragged with panic. Sam tried to ignore his own rapid heartbeat and fear, trying to mask it with an impassive face. His Dad had always taught him to never show weakness towards his enemies because it only satisfied them even more.

It was the same every day: the vampires would pick out the people they wanted to torment in any way, under strict orders from Wycliffe and Felicity to never cause them life-threatening injuries- not because the vampires felt pity- but because the humans were food and needed to be kept alive for their fresh blood. The vampires had more than one purpose for keeping their victims captive; they also kept them for their own sick pleasure and amusement, relishing the humans' pain and terror, their begging. Some of the poor victims even fell to the ground before their tormentors, crying and begging before the vampires even touch them. Just a glance at the monsters' torture tools were enough to send them into hysterics. Sam, however, did not receive the same treatment as the other victims. He was not grateful to his savior though because she could be just as cruel as her fellow vampires.

_W_

Sam glared at the two vampires ogling him through the bars of the cage as though he was a zoo animal.

The male vampire was a few inches shorter than Sam, barrel-chested and thick-necked with a mane of grey hair. He had a slightly bulbous nose set between two eyes like steel marbles. He clothes were completely black as though he was a reverend or in mourning. He appeared to be in his late fifties or early sixties. Sam thought he looked a little bit like Kris Kristofferson.

The woman was the complete opposite of her mate. She had blonde hair cut into a bob, large, expressive blue eyes, a thin, bladelike nose, full lips and ample cleavage. She wore a bright yellow summer dress- a garment that looked incredibly out of place- and bare feet. The top of the female vampire's head only reached her comrade's elbow. She couldn't have been older than twenty-five.

"He smells different," the female vampire spoke to her mate, her voice the slow drawl of a Southern accent.

Both vampires stared hungrily at the young man. The male vampire nodded and the cage door slid open slowly. Sam watched warily as the female vampire stepped inside and walked toward him with measured steps. Every muscle tense, Sam could feel his pulse pounding in his temples and the adrenaline coursing through his veins. No way was he going to let this monster come near him without a fight.

The female vampire smirked as she stopped in front of Sam, only inches away from him.

"Are you not afraid of me?" She asked in her Southern accent. Now that she was closer, Sam guessed she hailed from Mississippi.

"Touch me and I'll kill you," Sam snarled in response. The vampire gave a throaty laugh and reached out, grabbing Sam's right wrist.

Sam couldn't help but be shocked at the strength the woman possessed. He knew he would not be able to easily break her grasp. Clenching his left hand into a fist he lashed out at the woman and felt his knuckles connect with her cheek.

Sam gasped in surprise when the vampire's free hand wrapped around his throat and she shoved him against the wall, effectively pinning him. The woman put pressure on Sam's neck, pushing him down until his legs buckled underneath him and she was standing over him.

Sam could barely breathe, his free hand trying to pry the vampire's fingers away from his throat. The vampire tightened her grip on Sam's neck and he stopped struggling.

Keeping the young man pinned with one hand, the female vampire slid Sam's sleeve up to his elbow and turned his arm over so that the inside of his wrist was exposed.

The vampire's eyes met Sam's and she smiled as numerous shark-like fangs slid down in front of her human teeth.

Sam tried kicking out, thinking he could unbalance the monster and free himself but with the lack of oxygen he could not manage the strength to pull his legs out from under himself. He gave a silent cry when he felt the sharp sting of vampire's fangs in his arm. Sam watched in horror as blood dripped down his arm and onto the concrete floor.

Sam slumped when the vampire released him, his arm falling limply and his head pounding with pain. He couldn't believe how weak he felt. He glared up at the female vampire as she licked his blood away from her mouth and smirked down at him.

He watched silently as the female vampire walked out of the cage, the door sliding closed after her and turned to her mate.

"So, what do you think, Felicity?" the male vampire asked, not giving Sam a second glance.

"I want him," Felicity answered quietly as though deep in thought.

"You know the rules: 'Share and share alike'," the male vampire replied, his tone disapproving.

"No!" Felicity snapped, "He's mine. I want him."

The male vampire frowned and his mate batted her big blue eyes up at him.

"Please Wycliffe," she leaned against the larger vampire, one hand stroking his chest.

"Felicity," Wycliffe said warningly but sighed and looked up at the ceiling when his mate turned around, her back up against his chest.

"Make him a gift to me," Felicity whined, "I never ask you for anything."

Wycliffe sighed audibly once again, "Alright. If that's what you want."

Felicity flashed a delighted smile and stood up on tiptoes to kiss her mate on the cheek.

Wycliffe shook his head and linked arms with Felicity.

Pausing before mounting the stairs, Wycliffe addressed the vampire who was standing by a panel of buttons that Sam would learn controlled the cage doors, "Send someone down to patch him up, we don't want him bleeding out now do we?"

Eyes smoldering with anger, Sam's gaze followed the two vampires until they disappeared from sight, the sound of a door slamming shut not even making him flinch.

_W_

Sam willed himself invisible as the vampires walked past his cage, not even glancing in his direction. He hardly dared to breathe as he watched the monsters stop before a cage at the far end of the room and talk quietly amongst themselves for a long moment. The young man turned away when he heard the familiar sound of a cage door opening. He ground his teeth together painfully when he heard the terrified pleas of the vampires' latest victim.

"No, please, stay away from me," the woman cried out uselessly. Sam heard the sounds of a short struggle and the young woman began to cry in earnest.

"Pl-please," the woman begged, her voice wavering from her sobs, "I-I don't w-w-want it."

Sam heard Wycliffe mutter something in a low tone too quiet to make out- perhaps some encouragement or perhaps not- and the woman abruptly stopped crying.

Sam shuddered and bit his lip to keep himself quiet. He listened to Wycliffe's plodding footfalls and the rasp of something heavy being dragged along the concrete floor.

Felicity's clear voice chimed out in the quiet of the basement, "Welcome to the family."

Sam closed his eyes and didn't open them again until the sound of the door at the top of the staircase slamming shut echoed around the basement.

**Author's Note:**

**1. Edited by BerserkerHellHound.**

**2. A big hug goes out to AlxM for her help with this chapter!**

**3. Thanks to GrimmXEchelon, LightLessStar, avidreader33, cold kagome, AmaraRae, LeighAnnWallace, Samstruck, KrialovesSPN, SPN Mum, Lucydolly22, AshleyMarie84, BranchSuper, LAHH, MDarKspIrIt, Souless666, sammynanci, and sarah for reviewing.**

**4. Thanks to everyone who followed/favourited/alerted.**

**5. Please review! I've already had an amazing turnout already- Let's keep it going!**

**6. I hope you all have a very happy and safe new year! **


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Dean drove with all-speed to Sioux Falls. The twenty-eight hours it would take to arrive seemed to be working against him. Dean felt as though the sooner he got to Bobby's the sooner they'd be able to find Sam.

Dean left message after message on his father's voice mail, every one becoming more and more desperate sounding as the Impala tore up the miles.

Dean clenched his jaw in frustration and terror. Everything was falling apart. He had never felt so alone before.

The chords to 'Smoke on the Water' startled Dean and he fished his phone from his pocket.

"Dad?" Dean didn't even check the caller ID before answering.

"Sorry son," Bobby rumbled, "Just me."

"Oh, hi Bobby," the young man answered, trying to keep the disappointment from his voice.

"Heard from your father yet?" the older hunter asked.

Dean shook his head but then answered out loud, "I just don't understand it, Bobby. If Dad is out there somewhere, why isn't he answering his phone? I know he and Sam had their share of arguments but he can't ignore this! Does Dad maybe… could he hate Sam?"

"No," Bobby answered immediately, "Your Daddy doesn't hate Sam, why would you think of something as crazy as that? He most likely can't get reception where his is or something."

Dean sighed, "You're right Bobby- his phone just isn't working."

"Of course I'm right, boy," Dean couldn't help but smile just a little, "Now get your butt on over here so we can find your father and brother."

"Alright Bobby," Dean agreed, heartened by the older hunter's confidence that they would find John and Sam, "I still have a few hours to go but you'll keep a pot of coffee on for me, yeah?"

"'Course I will, son," Bobby grumbled, "Drive carefully, now."

Dean said goodbye to the older hunter and closed his phone. Feeling uncomfortable in the silent car, Dean reached out and turned on the radio and forced a smile when Led Zeppelin's 'Trampled Under Foot' started playing.

_SPN_

Sam's arm ached terribly. The limb throbbed in time with his heartbeat from the shoulder all the way down to his fingertips. He was sitting against the wall at the back of his cage, his head tilted back.

Sam listened to the noises surrounding him- the rustle of clothes as someone moved, soft crying, a stifled cough- and closed his eyes slowly.

The quiet padding of bare feet made Sam open his eyes half-way. He hadn't even heard Felicity open the door at the top of the stairs.

Sam watched as the vampire approached his cage, a hungry smile on her plump lips. She was wearing a dress again- dark red this time- and a cruel spark in her eyes.

The young man's face was a calm mask as the cage door opened and the woman stepped inside.

"Don't mind me coming down for a drink, do you?" she asked in a soft voice.

"Since you're asking, I wouldn't mind a cold one," Sam replied, trying to smile at the monster standing before him.

Felicity gave a haughty laugh and the young man sneered angrily.

The vampire reached a hand toward Sam and he flinched away. Felicity pouted and dropped her hand.

"You do not yet realize the position that you're in," the vampire commented, glancing around the confines of the cage.

Sam followed her gaze, "And what position is that?"

Felicity leaned forward and suddenly Sam could smell her- a mixture of copper and something earthy, decayed- and he pulled back in revulsion.

The vampire moved until her lips were nearly touching Sam's ear, almost as though she wished to confide in him some secret meant only for the two of them.

"I knew you were special from the moment I first saw you… and you are. Your blood is extraordinarily delicious… and I'll admit I'm a greedy woman… no other vampire will taste it. Not. Even. Wycliffe."

Sam shuddered and Felicity's lips brushed his ear as she chuckled.

"I will protect you," the vampire continued, "No one will ever touch you."

Sam swallowed painfully, "Except you."

Felicity's full lips curved into a deeper smile, "Am I that bad?"

Sam thought it best not to answer that question. The vampire frowned and lifted the young man's chin with two fingers.

Felicity reeled back with a cry of surprise when Sam's forehead slammed into her face, her narrow nose breaking under the force of the blow.

The vampire screeched in rage, her shark-like fangs slipping over human teeth, her fingers curled into claws.

Sam scrambled out of the monster's reach, knowing all too well that he would not get far, and smashed into the bars of his cage.

"Don't you dare touch me again!" Sam spat at the vampire and found himself trapped as Felicity whipped around, anger burning in her blue eyes.

The vampire's lips pulled back in a grotesque smile as she moved forward, "I like your spirit. Too bad it will have to be broken."

Sam backed himself into a corner and clenched his hands into fists. Felicity forced herself into the small space before the young man, crowding him in and cutting off any escape route.

Preternaturally fast, Felicity's fist struck Sam's face, catching his nose and right eye, blinding him with pain. Blood spurted from the young man's nose and his eye began to swell.

While the young man was distracted, the vampire grabbed his arm and pushed his sleeve up to the elbow. Salivating in anticipation, Felicity looked up to see that Sam was watching her through his one good eye, an expression of unadulterated hate etched into his features. The smell of the blood running freely from his nose was driving the vampire mad and she hesitated no longer. Taking a large bite, Felicity drank as much as she dared. She stopped when she felt the young man shudder and heard him gasp weakly.

Releasing her victim, Felicity wiped blood away from her mouth with one finger. She stood and peered down at Sam. He was listing to one side where he sat, both eyes closed and breathing in shallow bursts.

The vampire sucked on the tip of her finger for a moment, thinking, before turning and exiting the cage, a sly smile on her face.

_SPN_

Gravel shot out from beneath the Impala's tires as Dean skidded into the long driveway of Singer Salvage.

The young hunter was exhausted from the long drive but resting was the last thing on his mind.

Turning off the Impala's engine, Dean sat back against the driver's seat, listening to the tick of cooling metal.

He had hoped to see his father's hulking black truck in the driveway when he arrived but the conspicuous vehicle was absent.

Running a hand through his short-cropped hair, Dean opened the Impala's door, groaning slightly when his back protested the movement.

Grabbing his duffle bag from the trunk of the car, Dean took a deep breath and marched toward the porch.

Dean wasn't surprised when the screen door flew open and Bobby Singer stepped onto the welcome mat, a double-barrel shotgun pointed at the would-be intruder.

"Is that how you always greet your friends?" Dean asked with a barely-concealed smirk.

"Get in here," Bobby growled in response.

Losing his smile, Dean climbed the porch steps and brushed past the older man as Bobby held the door open for him.

"There's a fresh pot of coffee on the burner," Bobby told Dean as the younger man stepped inside and set his duffle bag down.

"You're a lifesaver," Dean commented, heading straight into the kitchen, intent on pouring himself a large cup of java.

Dean sat down at the kitchen table, mug of coffee in hand and slurped the hot beverage contentedly for a moment before being forced to come back to reality.

Bobby leaned against the doorway, arms crossed over his brown vest. He watched the younger hunter in silence for a long while before clearing his throat.

Dean looked up and sighed, his expression turning sad and stressed.

Bobby sighed, "I started looking up any unexplained disappearances or accidents back around the time Sam went off to college but so far I've come up with a big, steaming pile of squat."

Dean gulped down a mouthful of coffee, "I should have made Sam stay with us."

Bobby shook his head, "You know he'd have been miserable."

"But at least he'd be safe! At least I'd know where he was!" The younger man exclaimed; angry at himself for not trying harder to keep his younger brother from leaving.

Bobby grunted; he couldn't help but agree with the younger man. If John had had his way and forced his son to remain in the hunting life, both Dean and Sam would be sitting in his kitchen now, drinking coffee and trying to figure out where their father was.

"You hungry, son?" Bobby asked the younger hunter because he couldn't think of anything else to say.

Dean drained his cup and turned in his seat, eyes going to the coffeepot still sitting on the stovetop.

"If you're making," he said as he stood and made his way to the oven, pouring himself more coffee.

The hunters remained silent as Bobby emptied two cans of stew into a saucepan and cut slices of bread. Dean didn't speak again until he had a bowl of beef stew and a slice of toast in front of him.

"How are we going to find Sam?" Dean slurped a spoonful of stew.

The older hunter actually shook his head, "I don't know. I can ask around if anyone in the hunting community's seen or heard anything about Sam but I've got a feeling the chances of anyone knowing what happened to your brother is slim."

"Do it, Bobby," Dean muttered through a mouthful of bread, "Maybe we'll even end up hearing something about Dad while we're at it."

Bobby nodded in agreement with Dean because he didn't dare voice his doubts in front of the young Winchester. At least not yet.

He hated it but he didn't think that they'd be able to find Sam. Whoever or whatever was involved in his disappearance had nearly a four year head start and any number of things could have happened to the young man in that time. They had a better chance of finding Amelia Earhart than Sam Winchester.

As if he knew the older hunter's thoughts, Dean swallowed a huge mouthful of bread and spoke, "C'mon Bobby, stranger things have happened."

Bobby grunted in acknowledgement; maybe Dean was right. Hunters lived with the strange and uncanny all the time and the boy did say he'd know if Sam was gone. Bobby knew how close the brothers had been when they were younger and wouldn't be surprised if Dean was right.

_SPN_

Sam put his hands over his ears to try and block out the sound of screaming. He curled up on the cold concrete floor and squeezed his eyes tightly shut.

Not even Metallica could drown out the horrible cries of pain echoing around the basement prison.

Sam let out a hopeless, watery sigh as tears pricked at the corners of his eyes and threatened to overflow. Sniffing, Sam wiped his nose with his sleeve and reached out to grab his threadbare blanket. It was dark green and badly fraying at the edges but that hardly mattered to Sam. He clutched the blanket to his chest as though he was a small child again; afraid of the bogey man in his closet or under his bed and only had to hide beneath a motel bed's duvet for comfort until the danger had passed.

Shivering badly, Sam hugged the blanket, burying his face in the scratchy worn fabric as he choked back sobs of helplessness and fear. Sam knew that he was being weak; he knew that his father had taught him better but he couldn't stop the tears from falling once they started.

"Dean," he whispered as though his brother would be able to hear him- Sam wished that his brother would hear him- and thought for the nth time how hurt Dean had looked when he'd walked out the door for the last time, thinking only of going to California and leaving hunting behind forever.

"I'm scared, Dee," Sam muttered the words he'd so often spoken as a boy, words that would have his older brother by his side in an instant.

A lump formed painfully in Sam's throat because he knew that this time, Dean wasn't going to appear. Dean wasn't going to save him from the monsters this time.

**Author's Note:**

**1. Edited by BerserkerHellHound. Thanks Sis! **

**2. Thanks to Samstruck, sammynanci, DianaLadris802, cold kagome, where the wind blows, SPN Mum, BranchSuper, LAHH, LeighAnnWallace, AshleyMarie84, sarah, MDarKspIrIt, and MysteryMadchen, for reviewing.**

**3. Please leave a comment. I love reading your reviews!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Sam pressed himself against the brick wall at the back of his cage and tried to swallow down the fear clenching his gut, his heart rapidly pulsing against his ribs. He watched with wide eyes as the cage door slid open automatically and a large, shadowy figure walked inside. Sam tried to fight his growing terror and remember his training. The young man looked up at his tormentor, a male vampire named Myron who had an expression of gleeful malice on his face and a wicked looking whip in one hand, and felt a flicker of anger flare up in the midst of his fear. Sam was the son of a hunter and he wasn't about to give in that easily! Although the sight of the whip made all the saliva in Sam's mouth dry up and sweat bead on his brow in horrible anticipation, he refused show just how scared he really was.

The first lash came so suddenly- right across Sam's chest- and he couldn't stop the gasp of surprise escaping his lips, the burning agony forcing him to squeeze his eyes shut in pain. Sam curled into a tight ball, covering his head and neck as best he could with shaking hands. A second strike fell on the young man's back, drawing out a strangled moan before he could stop himself. The pain was bright- white-hot almost- and all Sam could do was pray that it ended quickly. But the fresh agony kept coming, slashes cutting into Sam's back, his waist, his sides mercilessly.

Sam never cried or begged throughout the abuse; he refused to give the vampire that satisfaction.

The corners of the Myron's lips curved into an ugly smile, flashing obscenely white teeth in the dim light.

"You know somethin' boy? I like you," he admitted in a rough-toned voice, swinging the whip again to lash against Sam's back again, "Felicity was right, you are strong."

"You don't start sniveling before the good part's even started," the vampire continued, kicking out his foot, the toe of his boot catching Sam's side, "First real challenge we've had. I like that."

"Sc-screw you," Sam croaked breathlessly and glared up at Myron, scrunching his face up in agony a second later when he no longer had the strength to hold his head up, letting his cheek rest against the cold concrete floor.

The vampire leaned down slowly, grabbing the young man's hair and pulling his head up. Sam groaned in pain as he was forced to look Myron in the eye. Sam's anger was reflected by the monster's own, a snarl etched on the young man's face.

"You had better show me some respect, boy," the vampire hissed, rage creeping into his voice, "I really don't like it when my food starts talking back to me."

"Do I l-look...like I...c-care?" Sam hissed weakly, his anger masking the fear that lay just beneath the surface.

Sam's head snapped back when Myron hit him; a trickle of blood ran down the young man's cheek and the vampire's shark-like teeth slipped down over his human ones.

"You'll pay for that," the vampire snarled viciously and shoved Sam against the wall.

The young man gasped as his abused back hit the rough brick. Myron kept one fist knotted in Sam's hair while the other grabbed his shoulder.

Sam didn't have time to cry out when the vampire sank his fangs into his neck. His legs kicked out and he pressed his fists against the monster's chest, trying to push Myron away but it was no use. Black spots encroached on Sam's vision, becoming larger and larger as he grew weaker. He didn't even feel any pain, just a kind of numbness.

So this is how I die, Sam thought sedately and the world slipped away.

_SPN_

Dean looked to his old friend when Bobby hung up the phone with a sigh.

"Well, I've called everybody I know," the older hunter announced and wiped imaginary dust from his hands.

"With any luck they'll call all their contacts and let 'em know what's up," Bobby continued when Dean failed to comment.

"Thanks Bobby," Dean muttered distractedly and squinted at the laptop screen.

"Find anything yet?" The veteran hunter asked. While Bobby had been calling up every hunter he knew, Dean had been searching the Internet for anything that could explain his brother's disappearance.

The younger man shrugged, "I don't know what I'm supposed to be looking for, Bobby. I don't know if I should be searching for anything supernatural or just some regular human sicko."

Bobby grimaced, "Hopefully some hunter's seen or heard something."

Dean nodded and his lips pursed in concentration.

Bobby moved to peer at the computer screen over Dean's head. He squeezed the younger man's shoulder comfortingly, "Don't worry, we'll find 'im."

Dean ducked his head down in acknowledgement and Bobby left him alone, shuffling into the kitchen to top up the coffee pot.

_W_

Every time Bobby's phone rang Dean hoped it would be someone with news of his brother- or if not, at least John finally returning his eldest's numerous voice messages- only to be left disappointed and increasingly agitated. Dean paced the first floor of Bobby's house- from living room to kitchen and back again- glancing at the hunter's old fashioned black rotary telephone whenever he walked past it.

All Dean could think about was his brother. Sam could be anywhere, hurt and alone and frightened. Dean didn't want to imagine what might have happened to his sibling since leaving for California but felt certain that if Sam had been able to escape and find him and their father, he would have. Dean decided he didn't care who or what had taken his brother; when he found Sam he'd make his kidnappers pay. Big time. No one messed with Dean's family and lived to talk about it.

The young man refused to even for a second entertain the idea that Sam might be dead. Dean would know if his brother was no longer alive. He just knew he would. Sam couldn't be gone. Dean would never forgive himself if anything happened to his little brother.

_SPN_

Sam's head felt as if someone had stuffed it full of cotton balls. His thoughts were sluggish and muzzy as he floated back up towards consciousness.

Dull pain radiated throughout Sam's body and he groaned in discomfort. He frowned for a moment when he felt someone running their fingers through his hair but relaxed, realizing it must be Dean. Sam wondered what had happened- had a hunt gone badly? Was he hurt? That would certainly explain the pain- because Dean had not shown his affection to Sam this way since they had been young children.

Sam opened his eyes slowly, fully expecting to see his older brother peering worriedly down at him.

Instead, Felicity was the one who met his gaze, a small smile on her lips. She was sitting on the concrete floor, using her lap as a pillow for Sam's head.

Gasping in shock, Sam tried to back away from the vampire. He flailed for a moment before he was forced to stop, panting weakly.

Felicity was still stroking Sam's hair and she frowned, "Don't move, Love."

"G-get a-a-_away _from m-me!" Sam tried to sound angry but his voice came out as a rasp.

The young man shuddered as Felicity brushed his bangs from his brow.

"You've lost a lot of blood," the vampire explained as Sam began to recall the events that had lead him to be in this condition.

"I th-thought you s-said I was yours a-a-alone," Sam hated saying those words but he couldn't help it, he wanted to know why Felicity had changed her mind.

The vampire frowned, twining a lock of Sam's hair around one pale finger, "Myron nearly killed you. He will be punished for his indiscretion."

Sam's arm slowly moved toward the side of his neck, as if he needed to confirm the vampire's words for himself. Felicity grabbed his hand and lowered it, "Don't touch."

"I hope you have learned to behave yourself," the female vampire continued as though she had not been interrupted.

Sam nodded, grimacing in pain when the movement aggravated the wound on his neck. He gave a shuddering breath when he realized that he was wearing an oversized grey t-shirt that was not his. Sam decided that he didn't want to know where it came from.

Sam lifted one of his arms and stared at the inside of his wrist- the flesh was marred by scabbed-over bite marks and dark bruises- and felt tears of helplessness prick at the corners of his eyes.

"Hmmm," Felicity murmured and leaned down, kissing Sam's brow and causing the young man to flinch away, "You'll be just fine."

_SPN_

"This is John Winchester; if this is an emergency, call my son Dean. If this is Dean, leave a message."

Dean closed his eyes as he listened to his father's voice, mouthing along with the words he now knew by heart.

Wiping a hand over his face, Dean stared up at the ceiling for a second before speaking, "Dad, I don't know what's going on… I don't know why you're not answering your phone… are you? Are you listening to all these messages? If you are than why aren't you here? Sam's missing, Dad. He's gone. I don't know where he is and I'm… Bobby's called everyone he knows but we're not sure if it will be enou-"

Dean cursed as the time-limit to leave a voicemail ran out. He took a deep breath, trying to calm his frayed nerves.

Running a hand through his short hair, Dean wandered into the kitchen and poured himself a mug of coffee from the pot.

He had barely slept the night before; his traitorous imagination conjuring up terrible visions of Sam's mangled, bleeding body and accusatory stare preventing Dean from getting any rest. Deciding that he would do better than just lying in bed awake, the young hunter had ventured downstairs hours earlier than he normally would have and put a pot of coffee on to percolate and once again try calling his father.

Footsteps on the staircase alerted Dean to Bobby's presence and he peered out the kitchen doorway at the grizzled hunter.

"Since when do you get up at the crack of dawn?" Bobby asked cheekily as he shuffled into the kitchen and poured himself some coffee.

Dean shrugged, "Couldn't sleep. I can't stop thinking about Sammy, you know? I just keep imagining the worst."

Bobby's smile dropped off his face and he nodded in agreement.

"You get a hold of your Daddy yet?" the veteran hunter asked, changing the subject.

Dean shook his head, "I just don't understand it Bobby. If Dad knows that Sam's missing, why isn't he here?"

Bobby sighed, "I wish I had all the answers for you son, I really do but you'll just have to ask John those questions when he shows up."

Dean nodded. He certainly would have a few choice words to say to his father when he arrived.

_SPN_

Sam watched silently as the cage door opened and the female vampire ladled some soup into his plastic bowl and set a slice of bread down beside it.

The vampire didn't even look at the young man as she doled out the food; it was like he was invisible or not consequential enough to be given recognition.

Before the cage door could slam shut, Sam peered past the monster and toward the staircase sadly. Escape seemed so simple: all he had to do was slip past the vampire as she gave him his food and make a run for it. Sam's heart sped up at the thought of beckoning freedom.

The young man remained where he was however. As tempting as it was to rush recklessly towards the stairs, Sam knew he'd never make it outside. The vampire stationed at the panel of buttons could grab him easily and even if he did manage to open the door at the top of the stairs without getting caught he had no idea what he'd be facing once he did. There might be more vampires or a maze of a building to try and navigate through. Sam was sure that if he did pull a stunt like that he'd never succeed.

The door closed as the vampire moved down the row of cages to hand out rations to the next prisoner. Sam sighed in resignation and stared for a moment his pitiful meal. He knew that the soup would be stone cold and the bread would be stale, like always.

Sam picked up the plastic bowl and noisily slurped up the broth, scooping up the leftover vegetables and noodles with his fingers. Setting the bowl down again by the door, Sam grabbed the slice of bread and moved toward the back of the cage. Instead of eating the bread, Sam squished it into a slightly crumbly ball so it wouldn't continue to grow stale and set it in the corner. Later, when Sam became really hungry, he'd eat the bread.

Rubbing his chilly hands together, Sam sat down and pulled his blanket closer, wrapping it around his shoulders.

What I wouldn't give for a hot cup of coffee, Sam thought wistfully. Licking his dry lips, Sam sighed and pulled his knees up to his chest, daydreaming about crappy diner coffee, greasy burgers and lumpy, flat motel mattresses- things that had seemed so annoying in a past life but now seemed heavenly compared to his new, small world.

Sam didn't even notice when tears began to slip from his eyes and down his face as he thought longingly about the things that had defined his world before his decision to leave his family for California and the chance at a 'normal' life.

Sam's heart clenched painfully when he thought of his brother. Did Dean even know he was missing? Was Dean looking for him? Or did Dean hate him now, because he had left? Did Dean think he'd betrayed their family? Did Dean even care?

A sob escaped Sam's throat before he could stop it and he bit down on his lower lip to try and quell the cries that threatened to follow.

"I-I'm s-s-sorry Dean," Sam whispered, "I'm s-sorry I left. Please don't h-hate me."

**Author's Note:**

**1. Thanks to Samstruck, Souless666, cold kagome, L.A.H.H, DianaLadris802, sarah, SPN Mum, LeighAnnWallace, Varishi, sammynanci, BranchSuper, littlelouis, and pottyandweezlbe89 for reviewing.**

**2. Thanks to everyone who alerted, favourited, and is following this story.**

**3. Please leave a review! **


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

Felicity grinned devilishly as she leaned forward, one hand on Sam's thigh, the other on his chest, pinning him against the wall.

"I can feel your heart pounding," she said huskily.

Every muscle in Sam's body was rigid as stone. He barely dared to breathe.

The vampire chuckled and licked Sam's neck, causing the young man to grimace and shake his head.

Felicity laughed out loud. She eyed the young man as though he was a T-bone steak and Sam withered under the scrutiny.

She was playing with him, taunting him. And Sam just didn't have the strength to resist anymore.

"Don't be like that, Love," Felicity chided and cupped his cheek in her hand. Sam dropped his gaze, he wished the vampire would just get this game over with and do what she had come to do.

Sam's breath hitched and he felt tears well up in his eyes. Felicity lifted her hand from the young man's leg and took hold of his wrist instead. Turning Sam's arm over, the vampire pursed her lips as her gaze lit upon the bruising and scabs.

"Please… don't," Sam whimpered but Felicity ignored him.

Sam bit his lip hard enough to draw blood. The vampire's eyes flicked up to Sam's face and she smiled.

"I'll be gentle," Felicity smirked, "I promise."

Her fangs slipped down and the vampire dipped her head down to take a bite.

_SPN_

Dean looked up tiredly as Bobby stepped into the kitchen and poured himself a cup of coffee from the pot sitting on the stove.

Leaning against the oven, Bobby gulped down some of the warm, strong liquid.

"Get any sleep?" The veteran hunter asked, taking in the young man's drawn features, the dark circles beneath his eyes and the stubble on his chin.

Dean only shook his head.

Bobby sighed, "I just don't know what to tell you, son."

Dean didn't meet Bobby's eyes, "You don't have to tell me anything."

The veteran hunter looked like he was about to say something else when one of his half-dozen telephones rang.

Pushing himself away from the oven, Bobby made his way to the bank of phones along the wall beside the doorway.

"What d'you want?" Bobby grumbled into the receiver and Dean couldn't help but look up hopefully.

The older man turned his back to the young hunter and Dean sighed and swallowed back the rest of his coffee, grimacing slightly.

Standing, Dean slipped past Bobby and through the den, stepping out onto the porch. He stomped down to the lowest step and sat, resting his elbows on his knees.

It was early morning- the sun's orange rays casting long blue shadows along the dirt drive- and a cool breeze ruffled Dean's short hair.

He stared out at the rusted, junky cars in the salvage yard without really seeing them. Bobby's guard dog- a Rottweiler called Rumsfeld- climbed out from underneath a dilapidated pickup and sniffed along his the gravelly driveway towards Dean.

"Hey boy," Dean mumbled and scratched the dog behind his ears; Rumsfeld groaning in pleasure.

_W_

Dean looked up over a half an hour later when he heard Bobby's boots on the wooden porch and heard the step creak as the older man sat down beside him.

"Who called?" Dean asked, biting his thumbnail distractedly.

"A friend of mine," Bobby sighed, "Name's Tanner Williams. Think he's found himself a vampire nest, a large one by the sounds of it."

Dean glanced at the older man skeptically, "Vampires?'

Bobby nodded.

"I've never heard of vampires before," he said, "I thought those were the only monsters that _were _actually made for the movies."

Bobby shook his head, "They're as real as you or me. Most have been killed off by hunters in the past but there are some nests still scattered around."

"Anyway," Bobby breathed out heavily, "Any hunter worth his salt knows that one man can't take on a whole nest of these blood-suckers."

Dean waited for a moment.

"And?" he asked expectantly.

"I said we'd lend him a hand," Bobby explained.

"_We? _As in you and I?" Dean's voice was sharper than he intended and he saw Bobby flinch ever so slightly.

"Look, I know you're stressed," Bobby began, "I know you're missing your brother and pissed as hell at your father."

"What are you saying? That I should just forget about them? Write them off and pretend like they didn't exist?" Dean stood up suddenly, hands clenching into fists.

"I ain't saying that, boy! Now would you shut up and let me finish talking!" Bobby snarled and Dean frowned but kept his lips pressed tightly together.

"We can't do anything right now about Sam or your Daddy," Bobby grumbled, "And you'll go nuts if you stick around here any longer."

"But Bobby, I-" Dean began but the older man raised an eyebrow, "I thought your Daddy taught you that saving people is the most important thing."

Dean sighed, "He did."

"Alright, and there's certainly people who need saving from these vampires Tanner's found," Bobby confirmed.

Dean didn't know what to say.

"It won't take long, son," the older hunter assured him.

The younger man nodded, "Okay, alright. When do we leave?"

"I'm going to call up some other fellows and we should be ready to head out the day after tomorrow."

_SPN_

Sam stared despondently out through the bars of his cage- shivering slightly even with his blanket wrapped around his shoulders- as he curled up on the cement floor, his bandaged wrist held out in front of him. Sam's arm throbbed painfully but he didn't care much, he was so used to the constant ache that he barely noticed it anymore.

Sam sighed and closed his eyes, trying to quell the feeling of hopelessness that covered him like a second blanket. Sam knew he was never leaving this basement, that he was destined to be vampire chow for the rest of his miserable life, he realized that he was never going to get the chance to apologize to his family for his mistakes. He still felt so guilty for all the angry words shouted at his father, for ignoring Dean's supplications and leaving without so much as a 'good-bye'.

Dad was right, Sam told himself, I should have stayed. I never should have tried to leave. I was naïve enough to think I could have a normal life and look what happened.

Sam barked a humorless laugh that quickly turned into a dry, hacking cough. Sam groaned at the burning pain deep in his chest and curled into an even tighter ball; the concrete floor of his prison seemed to suck the heat right out of him like it too was vampiric.

Sam opened his eyes slowly when he heard the door at the top of the stairs open and the sound of footsteps approaching.

Sitting up, Sam pushed himself back until he was at the rear of the cage, hidden by shadows and watched fearfully as Wycliffe and Felicity- accompanied by three others- crossed the room.

Sam put his hands over his ears as the vampires stopped in front of a cage close to his and the door slid open with a grating sound. The young man in the cage- not much younger than Sam himself- began begging the monsters to spare him.

"Please don't hurt me!" Sam heard the young man plead, "Please let me go! Please!"

Sam ground his teeth together and pressed his hands harder over his ears until it was painful.

"I w-won't tell anyone," the man tried again, "Y-you can trust me… wh-who'd believe me anyway?"

Sam heard Wycliffe's familiar shuffling footsteps and the young man became frantic.

"Oh God, no!" the captive was practically crying now, "No! Don't do this! I have a family, a fiancé!"

Felicity laughed loudly at the last pronouncement and the young man fell silent. Sam closed his eyes, knowing that it would be over soon.

_W_

Sam gazed straight into the eyes of the vampire who was watching him. She had been turned recently and Sam could tell exactly what she was thinking.

The cage door had slid open so she could give him some food but instead the newborn vampire had frozen, pinning her predatory eyes on Sam, nostrils flared as she caught the scent of his blood.

"I don't think you'll have enough time," Sam informed the monster in a quiet voice. She appeared to be calculating how long it would take for her to grab the young man and drain his blood before the older vampire at the control panel noticed.

"Alyssa!" The other vampire snapped as if on cue and the new vampire hissed in irritation, shoved Sam's food at him and turned away.

The door slid closed but Sam didn't move. He watched as Alyssa stalked down the row of cages, clearly no longer in a good mood.

Once both vampires had left, Sam grabbed his bowl and looked down at the cold chicken noodle soup. Sam's stomach growled hungrily and he lifted the bowl, drinking down the broth.

_SPN_

"So how exactly do you kill vampires?" Dean asked Bobby curiously, "Does the old stake to the heart thing really work?"

The older man shook his head, "Nah, it'd only piss 'em off. You gotta chop the head off."

"Huh," Dean grunted in surprise, "Well, I guess that works as well as anything."

Bobby nodded, "An' the blood of a dead man works wonders too. Acts like tranquilizer and incapacitates vamps."

Dean raised his eyebrows, wondering why he had never heard of this before, not even from his father.

"So no garlic or holy water?" Dean couldn't help but smirk.

"Garlic is useless," Bobby commented dryly, "And unfortunately holy water is too."

Dean scowled, "Well, that's great."

Bobby rolled his eyes in exasperation. The younger man seemed hell-bent on being miserable- not that he blamed Bobby in the least- but it was just so unlike him to be uninterested in a hunt.

"Just don't get yourself killed, boy," Bobby grumbled. He poured Dean a mug of coffee, spiking it with whisky and handed it over to the young man.

"Thanks," Dean muttered gratefully. Somehow Dean felt as though he was abandoning Sam by going on this hunt. Which was stupid, Dean told himself, because he had gone nearly four years hunting and believing that Sam was safe at Stanford when he wasn't. One hunt didn't seem like it would tip the scales in Sam's favour either way Dean looked at it. Sam had been missing for so long that if something bad had happened to him, it had surely been done already.

Dean wanted to be searching for his brother, not sitting idle in Bobby's kitchen, drinking coffee! The time that he would spend on this vampire hunt would be put to better use looking for Sam. But with absolutely no leads whatsoever, Dean was stuck. He guessed he could go back to Stanford and start from there but that didn't seem like it would work, by all accounts Sam had never even set foot on campus before he disappeared.

Dean sighed and sipped at his drink, the brew doing nothing to warm him

His fear for his brother sat like a ball of ice in the pit of his stomach and seemed to pull the heat out of everything around Dean. He felt like a failure. He had let Sam go on his merry way to college and had never thought once of trying to contact him.

I'm an idiot, Dean thought. It had been his job to look after his brother since Sammy was six months old and he couldn't even do that properly.

Where are you, Sammy? He wondered guiltily and drained his coffee cup. Standing, Dean rubbed a hand tiredly over his face before putting his mug in the sink.

Leaning against the counter, Dean told himself he should be getting his head in the game, if only to placate Bobby.

"Where's this vampire nest?"

**Author's Note:**

**1. Thanks to BranchSuper, nupinoop296, doyleshuny, judyann, cold kagome, L.A.H.H, Samstruck, Souless666, Grishma, SamDeanLover28, SPN Mum, and Olive-Pizza for reviewing.**

**2. Thanks to everyone who alerted, favourited or followed this story.**

**3. Please leave a review! **


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

Sam squeezed his eyes shut as he let out a dry, hacking cough. He groaned at the pain that burned deep in his chest and wondered if he was getting pneumonia. Blinking tears from his eyes, Sam stared out through the bars of his cage listlessly.

He didn't even bother looking up when the door at the top of the stairs opened and two vampires walked into the basement. Sitting up slowly, his movements stilted and lethargic, Sam shifted backwards until he could feel the cement blocks that made up the rear of his cage press into his spine.

The young man's breath hitched a little with fear as Felicity came to a halt in front of his cage.

Sam wrapped his arms around himself protectively and stared wide-eyed at the vampire as the door slid open.

"Please don't," Sam begged, "I think I'm sick."

The female vampire just smiled as she stepped through the doorway, "Oh, I don't mind."

Sam tried to make himself as small as possible, knowing that Felicity wasn't going to leave him alone, and attempted to blink away the tears welling up in his eyes.

The monster crouched down in front of him and frowned.

"I'm going away for a few days," Felicity told Sam as though he actually cared, "To visit an old friend."

Sam closed his eyes and wished the vampire would just leave him alone. He didn't fight when he felt Felicity's cool hand wrap around one of his wrists and draw his arm away from his body.

The young man watched as the vampire's sharp teeth extended, covering her human ones and she dipped her head down. He gasped in pain as the fangs sank into his skin and then began coughing again. Felicity's eyes flicked up to Sam's face as she drank, her grip on his wrist tight to keep his arm from slipping from her hand.

Sam almost doubled over as he continued to cough, his chest burning and sweat beading on his brow. Finally, Felicity had had her fill and let his wrist go. Sam didn't seem to have any more strength and let the limb fall to his side limply, blood oozing from the fresh wound.

The vampire tilted her head, watching curiously as the young man sighed tiredly, his eyes half-open.

"I'm going to miss you," Felicity said but Sam made no reply.

The vampire smiled and leaned forward. Sam cringed back from the monster and shuddered when Felicity kissed his brow.

The young man watched silently as the vampire walked out of the cage, the door sliding shut behind her.

Sam felt as though he could breathe again. He closed his eyes and tried not to think about the pain in his wrist. He knew that Felicity would get another vampire to come bandage it soon.

A few minutes later the door to his cage opened again and Alyssa stepped inside, carrying a roll of gauze and medical tape in her hands.

She was actually quite pretty with long black hair and a flawless olive complexion. She had large dark eyes and full red lips. She was wearing a pair of skinny jeans, a tank-top with silver sequins sewn into the fabric and grey ballerina flats.

Alyssa didn't speak or look at Sam as she bandaged his wrist, holding his arm much tighter than necessary.

Once the vampire left, Sam pulled his blanket over his shoulders and crawled into one corner of the cage, closing his eyes as he did so. At least he would be safe from Felicity's appetite for a little while.

_SPN_

Dean grinned as he turned up the volume on the stereo so that AC/DC's 'Highway To Hell' blared from the speakers.

Bobby leaned forward and tried to turn down the ear-splitting volume only to have his hand pushed away by the younger man.

"Driver picks the music;" Dean informed Bobby smugly, "Shotgun shuts his cakehole."

The grizzled hunter rolled his eyes, "We are not listening to this the entire time."

"Of course not," Dean agreed, "We can also listen to Metallica and Motorhead and Kansas-"

The young hunter flinched and laughed when Bobby made as if to smack him upside the head.

"Yer Daddy let you listen to music this loud?" Bobby asked, only partly joking and Dean's light mood immediately dried up. He fingered his cell phone in his jacket pocket. He wished his father would call. It was driving him insane not to know where his Dad was or if he was even alive. Was he even getting Dean's messages?

Dean sighed and put both hands back on the steering wheel, staring determinedly out the windshield. He was not looking forward to the long drive to Elko. Eighteen and a half hours and than an extra hour or so just to get to Tanner's vampire nest.

"Who else is going to be there?" Dean asked Bobby. He might as well know who he'd be hunting with; he wasn't really a fan of surprises.

"Caleb's coming along," the grizzled hunter answered.

Dean smiled. He liked Caleb. The hunter was only a few years older than Dean and treated him more like a brother than anything else. Although he was a friend of John's, the young hunter was completely the opposite of the ex-Marine. Laid-back and fun-loving, Caleb didn't really seem suited to be a hunter but Dean knew that his demeanor often helped him out. Witnesses to the supernatural often opened up to him more easily and he usually gained information others were not privy to.

"And a friend of Tanner's, Gordon Walker," Bobby continued, "An expert in killing vampires, apparently. Never met him myself but Tanner says he's the guy you'd want on yer team."

Dean raised an eyebrow. He'd never heard of a hunter only going after one kind of monster before. He wasn't sure if he believed it was right to focus only on a certain monster, allowing the others to go ahead and kill innocent people. John had drilled it into both his sons that _all _monsters had to be stopped.

_W_

"The most important thing to remember is: stay on yer feet," Bobby instructed Dean as the younger man bit into his bacon double cheeseburger.

Dean watched the older hunter as he chewed; Bobby setting his Turkey Club down as he talked.

They were sitting in a truck-stop in Casper, Wyoming, enjoying a quick lunch before heading out again. The small diner was deserted except for the cook, a waitress and the two hunters.

"They're not like the movie vamps," Bobby explained quietly. He needn't have bothered lowering his voice; the Country music coming over the speakers was loud enough to drown out a shouting match.

"They don't have ta bite their victims to turn them," Dean stopped eating and his expression turned to one of sincere curiosity, "If they get their blood in yer mouth, you're shit out of luck."

Dean swallowed the mouthful of burger, "You have to, uh, drink blood to become a vamp?"

Bobby shrugged, "Not drink, exactly, even a little bit is enough. Just keep yer mouth shut and yer eyes open and you should be as fine as paint."

Dean grimaced of the thought of a vampire dripping blood into his mouth. That was disgusting!

Bobby quirked a wry smile at the young man, knowing he'd just about made Dean lose his appetite.

"You're pulling my leg," Dean accused.

"I am not! I swear!" Bobby laughed at how pale Dean's face had grown over the past minute.

"That's just… nasty," Dean grumbled and shuddered. He picked up his burger and continued eating, trying not to think about vampire blood.

_SPN_

Sam watched as a vampire dumped a ladleful of cold soup into his bowl and walked away. He waited for the cage door to slam shut. It didn't. Sam peered at the vampire at the controls near the staircase. She was watching the male vamp dole out food, not paying any attention to her task.

Sam didn't move a muscle, hardly dared to breathe. The vampire working the controls didn't have a clear view of Sam's cage and wouldn't immediately notice that the door wasn't closed.

Unbelievably, both vampires, finished with their chore, turned away from the cages and walked up the stairs, talking quietly to one another. Sam waited until the door at the top of the stairs was closed and then counted to one hundred and then counted again just to be sure.

The vamps weren't coming back. They didn't even realize their mistake.

Slowly, trying not to make any loud noises, Sam approached the front of his cage and cautiously stuck his head out.

No blaring alarm was triggered and the door at the top of the stairs remained shut; so far so good.

Sam stepped out of the cage, still cautious, listening intently for footsteps.

One of the other prisoners realized he was free and moved to the front of her cage, grabbing onto the chain-link of the sliding door, "Hey! Let me out!"

Startled by the sudden cry, Sam put a finger to his lips, "I will, just be quiet."

Now other voices called out, "Let us go!" "Open the door!" "Get us out of here!" "Don't leave me!"

"Please be quiet!" Sam hissed, cringing every time someone cried out. Ignoring the pleas as best he could, Sam turned to the staircase and peered up towards the door.

He didn't know if it was locked or not. There was a chance it could be but he wouldn't know if he didn't try. Besides, the longer he took to decide a course of action, the greater the possibility a vampire would come down and find him.

Looking over his shoulder, Sam tried to calm the other prisoners before he began climbing the stairs.

"Where are you going?!" a frightened voice cried, "Let us out, please!"

Sam clenched his fists and continued. Although he hated the idea of leaving all those innocent people in the clutches of monsters, he knew if they all escaped in a large group the vampires would certainly find them and imprison them again. By himself, he could hopefully sneak past any guards and get help.

Sam stopped halfway up the staircase and stumbled to his side, hitting the right wall and almost losing his balance. His heart was pounding in his chest from exertion and sweat was beaded on his face and the back of his neck. His legs trembled and Sam thought for one terrible moment that he was going to pass out.

Wiping his forearm across his brow, Sam took a deep breath and continued onwards. He couldn't stop now. Gritting his teeth, Sam forced himself the rest of the way.

With one trembling hand, Sam touched the cool metal doorknob and was shocked when it turned easily in his grasp.

The door opened outwards and bright light assaulted Sam. It took his eyes a moment to adjust to the illumination but when he did, his heart stopped.

Wycliffe stood in the doorway; seeming to tower over the young man, his grey eyes boring into Sam's green ones.

The vampire said nothing. Instead he reached out one beefy hand and gave Sam a shove in the chest. Unbalanced, the young man pitched down the stairs. The back of Sam's head connected with the concrete step as he fell backwards and he was plunged into darkness.

_SPN_

Dean stared curiously at the storefronts lining the town of Elko, Nevada. They seemed to be huddling up close to each other almost as if they feared the oncoming night.

The receding sunlight painted everything red and Dean shivered slightly, thinking about how much the crimson glow looked like blood.

Bobby directed him to a restaurant called Cal's and the young hunter parked the Impala and stepped out onto the sidewalk.

"This is where we're meeting your friend?" Dean asked. The diner was squeezed in between a barber shop and a tourist trap that sold cowboy boots and hats and Navajo rugs.

Bobby nodded as he opened the door to the diner. Dean shrugged. The older man knew what he was doing.

The diner had an awful Southwest theme that made Dean cringe. The walls were wood-paneling and the floors were a brown-speckled tile. The vinyl on the bar stools and booth seats and chair was a dark brown. The heads of bison, pronghorn antelope and mountain goats seemed to stare at the patrons with their glass eyes.

"Hey Singer! Over here!" a voice called and Dean turned to see a man with a deeply lined, tanned face and bright blue eyes peering over a booth near the back of the diner at them.

"Tanner! How ya doing?" Bobby approached the man first, Dean walking behind him.

The hunter stood to greet them. The man was wearing a pair of dusty blue jeans, cowboy boots, and a cream-coloured dress shirt with a black bolo tie secured with a circular silver medallion featuring St. Christopher.

Tanner Williams thumped Bobby heartily on the back.

"Good to see you! Good to see you!" the man chuckled before turning to Dean.

"Pleasure to meet you, son," the cowboy held out his hand for Dean to shake, "Tanner Williams the name, hunting's the game."

Dean smiled and nodded, glancing at Bobby from the corner of his eye.

"This is Dean," Bobby came to the young man's rescue, "John Winchester's boy."

"No kidding?" Tanner asked and laughed, "Your old man's a fine, hunter; a fine hunter."

"Do you know where he is?" Dean asked on a whim, "He hasn't been answering his messages for a while now and I'm getting worried that something's happened to him."

The cowboy shook his head, "Nope, sorry. Haven't seen hide nor hair of your pa."

Dean nodded and shrugged; it was worth a try.

"Siddown, siddown," Tanner said, "What're ya'll drinking?"

Bobby and Dean slid into the booth across from Tanner and ordered beer when the waitress appeared.

"Is Walker here yet?" Bobby asked and Tanner shook his head, "He's coming in from Rhode Island. Just taking care of a nasty vamp nest over there. He'll be here in time to help us out though; man would never turn down the chance to kill some of 'em bloodsuckers."

"What about Blacker?" the grizzled hunter asked and Tanner nodded, "Arrived a couple a' hours ahead of you two. He's getting his gear ready."

"What can you tell us about this nest you've found? Bobby asked, glancing around to make sure their conversation wasn't overheard by the waitress.

Tanner leaned his elbows on the table so that he could speak in confidence.

"I noticed something odd a few months ago," he said, "People were driving through here but then they just disappeared."

Dean raised an eyebrow incredulously, "Are you sure they just didn't continue on to wherever they were going?"

He couldn't keep the skepticism out of his voice and it was obvious Williams knew what he was thinking. He turned his blue eyes directly on the younger man and smirked.

"Don't you think that'd be the first thing I'd check?"

Dean shrugged.

"Nope, folks stop here, eat lunch, buy their overpriced souvenirs and then vanish."

"And you think vampires are responsible?"

Williams glanced at Bobby, "Why'd you have to bring such a greenhorn along?"

The hunter from South Dakota smiled, "Dean doesn't have to know much about hunting vampires but he can swing a machete."

"Thanks Bobby," Dean grumbled and smiled at the waitress when she returned with their beers.

Tanner told the two men how he was almost a hundred percent certain that that nest of vamps was located in an old motel some distance from the city of Elko. A lot of people drove through Elko on their way to Las Vegas and Reno, giving the vampires a steady supply of prey without the chance of being found out since they didn't appear to be snaking on the locals. Although Elko featured more of its share of chain hotels- everything from Best Western to Super 8- Tanner explained that vacationers oftentimes stopped at the smaller, family-owned establishments because they enjoyed the beauty and peacefulness of the Nevada landscape.

"How are the vamps getting away with it?" Bobby asked, starting in on his second beer.

"Lots of small places don't take debit or Visa, even now," Tanner said, "Hell; some people can pay in cash if the price is low enough. Money's a lot harder to track than plastic."

Bobby and Dean nodded. If someone paid cash for a room at Tanner's motel, there would be no way of tracking down that person to say that they never left; it would be as though they'd never visited the motel in the first place.

"What about cars?" Dean asked, although he already had an idea of what could have happened to the victims' vehicles.

Tanner looked out the window beside the booth onto the dusty street.

"There's lots of places to hide things out in the desert," he said, "Arroyos and fissures that form naturally that are all but inaccessible to humans."

Bobby nodded, "Wouldn't be nothin' for a vamp to drive out to some lonely gorge, put the victim's car in drive, get out and watch it disappear over the side."

Dean frowned, imagining a deep canyon out in the middle of the desert, filled with cars. Something about this was bothering him though; Tanner had said nothing about bodies. Now, Dean would admit that he was new to this vampire thing but he knew that whenever a monster- any type of monster, from a ghost to a werewolf- attacked, they left bodies in their wake. Tanner so far had not mentioned any bodies piling up in the local morgue.

"Where have you found the victims?" he asked, "Were they near this motel? Was there a keycard stuffed in some guy's pocket?"

Tanner looked surprised that Dean would even ask such a question, but then he ran his hand through his pale blond hair, "Well, no-"

"No?" Dean repeated, indignant, "So you don't actually know for certain that this motel is full of vampires? You're just guessing? Going on a hunch?"

The young man stood up. He couldn't believe that Bobby would drag him into something like this. Williams had no solid proof at all that anything supernatural was going on.

"The place is closed up during the day," Tanner said quietly, "It only opens up at night."

"What?" Dean asked, astonished, "_That's _your evidence?!"

"Dean," Bobby said but the young man ignored him, "This is insane!"

"It all fits," Williams tried to explain, "Vampires don't like the sunlight, there not likely to be very active while the suns shining-"

"You're off your rocker," Dean accused and pushed his way out of the booth, storming out of the diner.

He felt as though Bobby had led him into some sort of a joke at his expense. Vampires! Really! Tanner Williams, whether he was a hunter or not, was definitely not playing with a full deck.

Dean unlocked the Impala's door and sat down in the vehicle, fuming. He thought Bobby would burst out of the restaurant, hot on his heels and give him a tongue lashing but the older man did not appear. After five minutes Dean closed the door and started the engine.

Bobby thinks he so Goddamn funny, Dean thought bitterly. He pulled out of the parking space and drove down the main street, not really caring where he was going, just needing to get away.

What the fuck was he thinking? Even if there were vampires, there'd be bodies, maybe not a ton but shouldn't at least a few turn up?

Dean drove slowly out of Elko, not paying attention where he was going. He knew he never should have come along. He had wanted to stay and wait for news from his father.

Dean left the Interstate and cruised along the gravel-and-dirt country roads, past grey rock formations, pale green sagebrush and red sand.

Dean could see why so many people drove through this state. It really was beautiful in a dry, desolate sort of way. It made a person feel very small.

Turning onto a little-used road that was barely more than a path on the dusty ground, Dean drove up a steep hill, halting the car in shock when he saw a sprawling motel at the other side of the incline, a hundred or so yards from where the ridge ended in a gentle slope.

Grabbing his cell phone, Dean was shocked to find that he had been driving aimlessly through the desert for over an hour and a half.

The building formed an 'L' shape against the reddish sand. The central building appeared to be the office with twenty rooms making up the longer leg of the motel and ten, the other leg. An old red neon sign- turned off- proclaimed the inn to be the Tranquility Motel. Dean noticed that there were no cars in the parking lot and Dean felt himself breathe a sigh of relief. Scanning the seemingly abandoned beige aluminum-sided building, Dean noticed with an unpleasant jolt that the windows in the office and most of the rooms had their blinds drawn.

"I'll be damned," Dean muttered. Putting the Impala in reverse, the young man inched back over the crest of the hill as if he had just encountered a grizzly bear while hiking and knew best to move away slowly, lest any sudden actions provoked an attack.

Dean wasn't quite sure what to make of Tanner Williams anymore. Maybe the hunter wasn't as flaky as Dean had thought he had been. Maybe he had actually investigated the motel and the disappearances fully and just didn't want to tell anybody- even Bobby- his trade secrets. Dean wouldn't be surprised; hunters could be some paranoid men and women when they wanted to be.

The drive back to Elko took less time than the drive out, partly because Dean was going well over the speed limit and he also wasn't meandering on his way now.

The young man found a parking spot relatively close to Cal's- the diner was now filling up with the dinner crowd- and exited the Impala with a sheepish expression. Bobby and Williams were leaning against the redbrick wall of the restaurant, the latter with a small brown cigarette hanging out of his mouth.

"About time you showed up," Bobby pushed himself away from the wall and approached his young friend, "I was beginning to think you'd driven back to Sioux Falls without me."

Dean shook his head and turned to Tanner, "I think I found that motel you've been watching."

Williams raised an eyebrow, "The Tranquility?"

Dean nodded, "You were right. There were no cars in the lot and all the windows were covered up, like everyone was having a late siesta or something."

Bobby looked surprised at the younger man's quick change in attitude for a moment but then he just muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like 'idjit'.

Williams glanced at his friend, "Better get some rest now, we'll go in as soon as the sun's up."

Bobby nodded and followed Dean back to the Impala. The grizzled hunter didn't speak as they drove a couple of blocks to a motel where Caleb and Tanner were staying.

"Look, Bobby if you're pissed at me, I'm-" Dean began as they pulled around to their room and got out of the Impala.

"I'm not mad at ya," the older hunter muttered, "I know you don't get to hunt with many other fellas, and you're so used to the way your Daddy operates that I sometimes forget you ain't as worldly as me."

Dean smirked as he grabbed his duffel bag from the trunk and handed Bobby his luggage.

Letting them into their motel room, Bobby went straight to the clock radio on the nightstand and set the alarm for six AM.

When Dean saw Bobby take off his vest, boots and baseball cap he frowned, "We're not going for dinner?"

The grizzled hunter shook his head as he sat down on the end of one of the beds, "We'll need a full night's sleep if we're going to take on an entire nest of vamps in the morning."

"On an empty stomach?" Dean asked and Bobby shrugged.

"And why are you going to sleep now? It's still light out!" Dean continued.

Bobby ignored the younger man and settled down underneath the blankets without changing his clothes.

"Huh," Dean muttered. His stomach grumbled hungrily and Dean opened his duffel, grabbing the bag of beef jerky he had stashed in it.

He decided that he could coerce his friend to eat a quick breakfast in the morning if it came to it- Dean didn't think it was a good idea to hunt without some fuel- and munched resolutely on the dried meat, watching the sunshine wane from the motel window.

_SPN_

Sam groaned as he slowly regained consciousness. His entire body ached. The concrete floor felt cold against his cheek and he shivered.

Sam's eyes flew open and he gasped when he felt someone grab his hair and force his head up.

Wycliffe was crouching on one knee in front of the young man, a look of fury on his face.

"You tried to escape," the vampire said in a deceptively calm tone.

Sam tried to speak but no words came out, he felt sick to his stomach and wondered if he was going to puke. Wycliffe blurred in front of him and Sam closed his eyes, certain he had a concussion.

The vampire jerked on Sam's hair and the young man moaned in pain, opened his eyes again.

"You must be made an example of," Wycliffe told him in that eerily soft voice.

From the corner of his eye, Sam saw that they were in the middle of the room, the cages surrounding them, their occupants watching fearfully.

Sam startled when a hand touched his leg and his heart skipped a beat when he realized that he was only wearing his boxer shorts; his jeans were gone.

"W-what a-are you going to do?" Sam asked Wycliffe, trying to focus on the vampire and keep his voice from wavering without success.

The grey-maned vampire released his hold on Sam's hair and smiled, "I will make sure you never try and escape again."

Sam tried to fight as a couple of vampires grabbed his arms, preventing him from sitting up.

Sweat beaded on Sam's brow. He didn't know exactly what Wycliffe had planned but he knew that whatever it was, it wasn't going to end well. He had the distinct impression that the vampire did not like him in the least.

Not being able to see what was going on behind him, Sam jumped when he felt a hand wrap around his leg, just underneath his knee.

"Won't Felicity be upset about this?" a voice asked and Sam tried to turn his head to see what was about to happen.

"She'll understand," Wycliffe answered in a tone that said that he didn't care whether or not Felicity had a problem with what he was about to do.

Sam watched as Wycliffe strolled around him, moving closer to the victims in the cages.

"Watch closely," he told the prisoners and turned to oversee the punishment.

Sam cried out in pain when he felt the blade of a knife cut into the back of his thigh. He struggled to pull out of the vampires' grasp but they were too strong. Tears streamed down his face as agony shot throughout his leg. Hot blood streamed down Sam's thigh and onto the concrete floor. Sam's vision swam and he nearly blacked out.

The hand left Sam's leg for a moment and the young man prayed that the ordeal was now over. A searing pain in his thigh tore a scream from Sam's throat and the smell of burning flesh made the young man's stomach clench and threaten to expel its meager contents.

The pain became unbearable and Sam lost consciousness for a short time. He did not wake up when the two vampires holding his arms dragged him back into his cage. He did not wake up when the door slid shut, once again trapping him. He did not wake up when Wycliffe paused to watch him, a superior smirk on the monster's hoary features.

The door at the top of the stairs closed ominously behind the male vampire as he left the basement, certain that Felicity's pet- and the other prisoners- would not try to get away again.

When Sam regained consciousness, he was lying on his back and shivering fiercely. The pain in his leg was incredible and for a long while he dared not move. Sam tried to recall the words to one of Dean's favourite Metallica songs- 'Until It Sleeps'- to distract himself from the pain but the sounds of the other prisoners caught his attention.

He could hear someone crying and a man repeating the same two words over and over, "Oh God, oh God, oh God."

_SPN_

Dean greeted Caleb through a mouthful of breakfast sandwich.

"Better not eat too much, Dean or you won't be able to move fast enough!" the other young hunter joked.

"C'mon! I had a bag of beef jerky for dinner! I'm starving!" Dean exclaimed and washed down his mouthful with a swig of coffee.

Bobby glanced at the young man from over the rim of his own coffee mug and shook his head. The three hunters had met up in the tiny diner across the street from their motel. Although the restaurant was open, it was still dark out; the sun had yet to rise.

"So where's Tanner?" Dean asked.

"Meetin' up with Gordon Walker," Bobby said, "Letting 'im know what's what."

Dean nodded distractedly as he shoved the last bit of sandwich into his mouth.

"What's his story? Why's he only go after vampires?" he asked curiously.

Bobby finished his coffee and motioned to their sleepy-eyed waitress for a top-up before answering.

"Walker's sister was taken by vamps when they were kids," he said quietly, "his sis hid him so he'd be safe an' he was; the monsters didn't find him but they grabbed her."

Dean frowned, "Damn. That blows."

Caleb nodded, "Walker's sister was all he had in the world; their parents weren't around a lot so it was up to her to look after the both of them."

Dean could sympathize with the guy. It seemed that Walker's child wasn't much different from his and Sam's.

"So now he's killing every bloodsucker as revenge for his sister's death?" Dean asked and was surprised when Bobby shook his head.

"The vamps took Walker's sister but they didn't kill her," he said, "They turned her."

Dean's eyebrows rose up in surprise.

"When he was old enough, he tracked down the vamp who'd turned his sister and killed him," Caleb told Dean, his voice grave, "And then he found his sister and killed her."

"He what?!" Dean exclaimed, "Walker killed his own sister?"

Bobby nodded, "If you ask him about it- and I strongly advise against doing so- he'll tell you that it wasn't his sis anymore. It was nothin' but another monster in need of putting down."

Dean shuddered. He couldn't imagine killing his brother.

The bell above the door tinkled merrily and Tanner and Walker entered the diner.

Bobby, Dean and Caleb stood to greet the two other hunters and Dean took the time to scrutinize Gordon Walker.

The man certainly had an air of intensity about him. He didn't even smile as he shook hands with Bobby and Caleb.

"And this is John Winchester's oldest boy, Dean," Tanner introduced the two and Dean held out his hand.

"I hear you've never hunted vampires before," Gordon said, "I'd have thought your father would have told you about them a long time ago."

Dean shrugged, "Bobby says there's not many left and there are plenty of other baddies that need their asses kicked besides Dracula and his buds."

Gordon squeezed Dean's hand a little too tightly when they shook, sizing up John Winchester's oldest son as he did so.

"We should get a move on," Tanner announced, "I'd like to be at the Tranquility as soon as the sun's up."

The hunters filed out of the diner, Bobby and Dean heading towards the Impala while the other three hunters went to their own vehicles; Caleb and Tanner riding together while Gordon drove solo.

_W_

Dean and Bobby were quiet during the drive to the motel. Bobby stared out the window watching the sky grow light in the east. Dean was preparing himself for a completely new hunting experience. He was used to shooting werewolves and salting-and-burning the remains of ghosts, even exorcising demons, but he had no idea what it would be like to chop the head off a vampire.

At least they were going in during the day, that way the monsters would be asleep.

"Should be like shooting fish in a barrel, eh Bobby?" Dean asked out loud, feeling confident.

"Just 'cause they're asleep don't mean they won't wake up," the older hunter answered, much to Dean's chagrin.

"Great," he muttered, "Is there any last-minute facts I should know before we kill these things? Are they going to turn into bats or wolves? Maybe vanish into thin air?"

Bobby reached out and smacked the younger man on the side of the head, "Don't be a smartass."

_W_

The machete felt heavy in Dean's hands as he stood beside Bobby. The grizzled hunter had put his baseball cap on backwards to make it easier for him to see and Dean couldn't help but smirk at the sight; it made Bobby look like a big, bearded ten-year old.

"Something funny?" Walker asked Dean and the younger man shook his head.

Tanner put his finger to his lips, telling all four of the hunters they needed to be quiet. Dean couldn't help but feel anxious. They really had no idea what they were walking into. Tanner had given them a rough estimate of how many vamps he thought would be there- twenty, give or take- but that could end up being dead wrong. Dean wished he had his Dad by his side. John was an excellent hunter; focused and calm in a crisis, able to adapt to many different situations and one hell of a shot. Dean sighed and tightened his grip on his machete.

Tanner quickly picked the lock to the front office and pushed the door open slowly as though prepared for a vamp to jump out at him any second.

They had come to the conclusion that none of the vamps would be in the patrons rooms because the creatures tended to like sleeping close to one another. Dean had smirked at the thought of one giant vampire slumber party. Now the idea didn't seem so humorous. If all the vampires attacked at once… well…Dean just hoped that wouldn't happen.

With Tanner on point, followed by Walker, Bobby, Dean and Caleb bringing up the rear, the hunters entered the office.

Dean noticed that the reception desk and lounge area were both surprisingly clean and free of clutter. Dean wasn't sure what he was expecting but he certainly didn't think the vamps would clean house.

No one would want to stay here if the place looked like a pig-sty, he reminded himself.

There was a set of stairs on the left side of the front desk that looked as though they led to the proprietors' apartment. With hand signals, Tanner informed his fellow hunters that he and Gordon would investigate upstairs.

Bobby nodded and nudged Dean so that he would go around to the other side of the desk. Curious, Caleb moved in behind the desk and flipped through the various papers sitting on top of its wooden surface.

A shriek and a thump startled all three hunters and within seconds they were all tearing up the stairs, ready for the fight.

Dean reached the landing first and was nearly bowled over when a young man dashed out of one of the rooms and ran right into him. Dean swung his machete and lopped off the vampire's head, causing the body to topple down the stairs, nearly tripping Bobby and Caleb on their way up.

On instinct, Dean rushed into the room the vamp had come from and was faced by three very pissed-off looking women.

A redheaded vamp leaped at Dean and he swung the machete blindly, missing the monster's neck and burying the blade in her abdomen instead. The woman shrieked and Dean swore, trying to pull the weapon free; it was stuck.

Dean maneuvered so that the skewered redhead was standing between him and the other two vampires. The injured vamp apparently didn't like being trapped as much as Dean did. She grabbed the blade of the machete and tried to tug it out of her abdomen.

Dean backed into a corner, making it impossible for the other two vamps to attack him from the sides. He yanked on the machete again, eliciting a scream from the vampire.

"Believe me lady," he growled through clenched teeth, "I don't like this either."

Caleb ducked into the room, winked at Dean and dispatched the two other vamps while they were distracted. Next, he easily beheaded the redhead and Dean let go of the machete so he wouldn't be brought down with the falling body.

"And you say this is your first vampire hunt," Caleb commented jokingly.

"Laugh it up," Dean grunted as he grabbed the machete's handle again and settled his boot against the dead vamp's chest, finally freeing the weapon with a wet squelching sound.

The two young hunters left the room cautiously, ready for another attack. The sounds of fighting drew Dean and Caleb's attention to a door that was open at the end of the hall and both young men headed in that direction, weapons raised.

Dean was grabbed from behind and slammed into the wall, roughly. A tall male vampire with longish grey hair was towered over the hunter. Dean swung his machete but the monster blocked the blade and grabbed the front of the young man's shirt. The vampire opened his mouth and his fangs slid down from his human teeth. Dean stared at what he could only think of what the mouth of a shark. He cringed away from the vampire. The monster ducked his head down to bite but stopped suddenly, a gurgle escaping his throat.

Dean looked down and saw the blade of a machete sticking out from the vampire's neck. The blade was ripped free, nearly decapitating the monster in the process and the vampire released Dean. Gordon Walker smirked at Dean and turned away.

Great, the young man thought, this is the second time I've needed someone to come to my rescue. It was embarrassing!

Stepping over the fallen vampire's body, Dean was about to continue on towards the end of the hall but he paused at the stairs.

Someone should really make sure none of these bastards slip away; he decided and descended the staircase, smiling confidently.

Dean peered around the front desk and lounge area, seeing no sneaky vamps trying to flee undetected.

The sounds of fighting upstairs were growing fainter and Dean guessed that the majority- if not all- of the vampires had been sleeping upstairs.

A _creak _made Dean spin around and he came face to face with a young woman with long black hair, olive skin and large dark eyes. She opened a mouth full of shark-like fangs and hissed.

Dean lifted his machete and took the vampire's head off with ease. The body tumbled lifelessly to the floor and Dean frowned. The girl had been intensely hot, even for a bloodthirsty monster.

Lifting a foot to kick the body out of the way, Dean paused when he noticed that her feet were keeping a door he had not previously noticed, ajar.

"What the heck?" Dean muttered. The door was set into the wall on the right side of the reception desk, covered completely by wallpaper. Reaching out, Dean grabbed the door and pulled it all the way open. It was made of metal and was four inches thick. Peering into the doorway, Dean saw a concrete staircase leading into darkness.

Glancing over his shoulder, Dean saw neither his fellow hunters nor any vampires. Leaving the door open, he proceeded down the stairs, keeping his machete ready in case he encountered any more bloodsuckers.

**Author's Note:**

**1. Thanks to reannablue, cold kagome, 008764, NAVILLUS, SupernaturallyEgocentric, Samstruck, Sivadkristal1447, doyleshuny, SPN Mum, Souless666, DeansSammy, SamDeanLover28, BranchSuper, AliRose and Guests for reviewing.**

**2. Thanks to everyone who alerted, favourited, or followed.**

**3. Although the city of Elko, Nevada is a real place; the Tranquility Motel was taken from a Dean Koontz novel titled **_**'Strangers'. **_

**4. Reviews are love!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

When Felicity returned from visiting her friend she was furious. How dare Wycliffe go against her wishes! No one was to touch the boy but her! Had she not made that clear after Myron nearly killed him in a fit of rage?

After her mate explained that the boy had been attempting to escape however, Felicity calmed down somewhat. She was still displeased with Wycliffe but she understood why he had acted as he had.

Sam gritted his teeth in pain when Felicity grabbed the front of his shirt and slammed him against the wall at the back of his cage, jarring his injured leg.

"Why did you try and leave? Do you not like me?" the vampire asked and Sam looked away; he wasn't going to answer that.

"I don't hurt you," Felicity commented, laying her free hand on Sam's cheek, "Not like the others."

Sam closed his eyes. He guessed he should be happy that Felicity wasn't a sadist in that sense. The other vampires tortured the prisoners for their own sick entertainment- like Myron had tortured him- but Felicity had made it clear that Sam was off-limits.

"Why am I still here?" Sam asked quietly. He didn't know how long he had been in this basement but he was sure it was already longer than most of the people here.

Felicity smiled, "Because you're special."

The vampire licked her lips as if to emphasize the point and Sam struggled against her.

"It has been a while since I've fed," Felicity said, her blue eyes meeting Sam's green ones, "The others just don't taste the same."

Sam shuddered and Felicity grabbed his wrist, brining it up to her mouth.

_W_

Sam stared despondently at the cold soup Alyssa doled out into his bowl. He didn't move as the door to his cage slammed shut and she walked away. He let out a hacking cough that made his chest burn and he groaned in pain.

Tugging his old, frayed blanket further up his shoulders, Sam laid down, staring at the wall at the back of his cage. He curled up in a ball to try and conserve his warmth. His leg- the injury old by now- ached but Sam barely noticed. He had grown used to the familiar bone-deep throb of the crippled limb. Sam did not try to escape again.

_SPN_

Dean crept down the stairs, eyes keen and ears alert for any hidden enemies. The staircase was steep, made of concrete and there was little light to guide Dean's way. He guessed that vamps didn't need everything to be lit up like Christmas all the time since they had excellent night vision anyway. Dean just wished he had brought a flashlight or something because he didn't feel like missing a step and breaking his neck. Wouldn't that just impress Bobby's friends?

Dean froze when he heard a whimper drift up from somewhere below him.

Vampire? Dean thought but then he recalled Tanner's missing tourists.

"Oh no," the hunter muttered under his breath, "You have got to be kidding me."

Although Dean kept his machete ready, he tried to prepare himself for what he might find at the bottom of the stairs.

Stepping onto the floor, Dean's eyes widened at the long row of cages towards the back of the room. Dean counted a dozen of them and nearly all of them were occupied.

"Please don't hurt us!" a male voice cried and Dean lowered his weapon.

"It's okay," he said in a calm voice, "I'm not a vampire. I'm one of the good guys."

The room was slightly chilly and there was a faint scent of blood in the room.

"Let us out!" a woman begged and Dean began hurrying to her cage, fingers fumbling for his lock-pick in his back pocket.

"No! Over by the stairs," the woman pointed through the chain-link of her cage with one trembling finger.

Turning, Dean saw the panel the woman meant and went to it. He frowned at the numerous buttons before taking a chance and pressed one. The door to the empty cage to his left slid open with a groan.

"Please hurry," another voice called out, laced with fear.

The sound of footsteps on the stairs caused Dean to raise his machete and the victims to fall silent, paralyzed with fright.

"Dean!" Bobby's gruff voice called and the younger hunter sighed with relief.

"Down here Bobby!" he answered and turned his attention back to the panel of buttons.

"Christ almighty," the grizzled hunter muttered when he saw the cages.

"I can't figure out how to open all of them at the same time," Dean growled, frustrated.

Bobby barely glanced at the control panel before slamming the blade of his machete into it, sending sparks flying.

"Jesus Bobby!" Dean jumped back in surprise, "Warn a guy next time!"

"Try to open them now," Bobby rumbled and Dean nodded, heading over to the woman's cage. Gripping the edges, he was able to slide the door open slowly, enough for the woman to slip through.

"I'll get the others down here," Bobby told Dean, "Don't let 'em go anywhere. We'll need to ask them some questions."

"Thank you, thank you," the woman grabbed Dean's arm, her expression wild and grateful. Dean smiled, grateful that he had been able to help.

"Do you think you can get some of these doors open?" he asked the woman and she nodded hesitantly, "I can try."

_SPN_

Sam heard heavy footsteps coming down the stairs.

Wycliffe, he thought, and closed his eyes.

"Please don't hurt us!" one of the male prisoners begged and Sam put his hands over his ears to try and block out the sound of what he knew was coming. The man had been dragged down the stairs only a few hours ago- what seemed like a few hours ago, there was no way of telling time down here- and now Wycliffe was certainly here for the first bite.

Sam heard Wycliffe say something but it was too quiet to hear. He curled up as tight as he could, pulling the blanket over his head to cover himself entirely.

"Let us out!" one woman nearly shrieked and Sam gritted his teeth. If she didn't shut up then she was going to get punished.

Trying to quell his terror, Sam began humming a Metallica song as quietly as possible, reciting the lyrics in his head.

"No! Over by the stairs," the woman shouted, sounding like she was giving instructions.

What was going on?

Sam cringed when one of the cages near him opened with a rusty sound. Did the vampires have a new victim?

"Please hurry," Sam heard someone cry from across the room.

Sam wanted to know what was happening but he was too scared to look. A second set of footsteps began descending the stairs and now Sam was convinced it was the vampires; they rarely came down here by them-

"Dean!" an achingly familiar voice exclaimed and Sam's heart skipped a beat.

Bobby?! Was it possible?

"Down here Bobby!" the owner of the heavy footsteps- not Wycliffe- called and Sam's eyes filled with tears.

It was Dean! His brother was here! Dean had found him!

Sam's heart sank. It could just be a dream. He'd had dreams like this before, so vivid that they seemed as though they were actually happening, but then he'd wake up and be back in his cage with his chest aching and sweat running down his face.

No, better not say anything. Let the dream continue for a little while longer.

Sam bit his lip and listened to his brother and friend as they figured out a way to release all the prisoners.

"Christ almighty," Bobby said, his tone shocked.

Sam almost smiled. It sounded so much like the gruff old hunter.

"I can't figure how out how to open all of them at the same time," Dean growled in frustration.

Hit the large green button, Sam thought.

The squeal of metal against metal, of cracking plastic and the sound of severed electrical wires sparking made Sam startle.

"Jesus Bobby! Warn a guy next time!" Dean's surprised and slightly indignant voice demanded.

"Try to open them now," Bobby told Sam's brother and the young man heard footsteps walk into the middle of the room. The sound of grating and scraping filled the basement and then a woman's voice spoke up, thanking Dean.

"I'll get the others down here," Bobby began but the rest of his words were nothing but white noise to Sam.

The young man lifted his head slightly. Others? There were other hunters with Dean and Bobby? Was his Dad here too?

This wasn't usually part of his dream. He almost always woke up by now. Never actually escaping but at least having his brother or Bobby or his father find him.

Sam heard more cage doors being tugged open. He heard a meek voice ask Dean if he had killed all the vampires.

"Yeah," Dean grunted as he pulled on a cage door, "We got them all."

This wasn't a dream. This was real. Dean was really here!

Tears sprang to Sam's eyes and he called out his brother's name.

"D'n."

Four sets of footfalls came down the stairs, announcing the arrival of Dean's fellow hunters.

_SPN_

Dean gritted his teeth as he pulled open a cage and allowed a young man- a teenager really, probably sixteen or seventeen- to escape.

He turned when he heard Bobby, Tanner, Gordon and Caleb descend the stairs.

Bobby and Tanner immediately corralled the freed prisoners and began comforting them. Caleb ran to Dean's side and started helping opening the cage doors.

Gordon watched the other hunters, his machete raised as though he imagined the prisoners to be a threat to him.

"You wanna give us a hand, Gordon?" Dean peered over his shoulder and glared at the dark-skinned hunter.

As though the idea of helping out innocent people was abhorrent, Gordon sighed and approached one of the cages. Dean glanced at Caleb and the other young hunter just rolled his eyes.

"Ever seen anything like this?" Dean asked Caleb and he shook his head, "This is new to me."

Dean nodded and frowned. It was clear that some of these people had been here for a while. Bobby had told him that sometimes vampires kept their victims for a few days before finally draining them dry but this was different. Dean took the hand of a pretty brunette as she stepped cautiously from her cage, her arms covered in bite marks. Her face was thin and her dark brown eyes were sunken. The dress she wore almost hung on her frame.

"What day is it?" she asked in a quiet voice and Dean told her the date.

The young woman had been missing for thee weeks.

_W_

"Is this it?" Tanner asked as Dean led the seventh prisoner over to the group. They all huddled together, a couple of the women clinging to one another for support. It was a sad sight. Dean had seen a lot of victims of supernatural creatures but this had to be the worst. They were still terrified, as though they expected this all to be some sort of a dream or trick.

"There's another guy," a teenage boy spoke up, "In there."

The young man pointed and Dean could just make out a form huddled beneath a ratty, old blanket. How could he have missed him?

Dean approached the cage, speaking soothingly. While the other prisoners had come to the front of their cages, fingers curled around the chain-link of the door, anxious to be set free, this man had not moved or made a sound as far as the hunter could tell.

Gordon appeared beside Dean, his machete raised.

"Put that down," Dean hissed, irritated at the dark-skinned hunter's behaviour.

"Could be a trap," Walker argued and refused to lower his weapon.

Dean sighed, "Just don't swing until we know for sure he's a vampire or not."

Gordon didn't respond and Dean hoped that the man wasn't already planning on killing the poor guy.

Dean grabbed the door and shoved it open. The only movement that Dean could make out was the tremors twitching the blanket.

"Hey, pal," Dean said in a louder-than-usual tone, "You're safe. You don't have to be scared."

Crouching down- well aware of Gordon standing over him, ready for an attack- Dean grabbed a corner of the blanket and pulled it away from the man. Dean gasped in shock and almost fell over backwards at the sight. Gordon moved closer to the man and branched his machete, eager to draw blood. But the man did not attack. He just stared up at Dean from where he was curled up on the floor.

"We're not going to hurt you," Dean told the man and raised his hands to show he was weaponless. He nudged Gordon's leg and the dark-skinned hunter reluctantly sheathed his machete.

The man looked awful. He was extremely thin and he was shaking violently. His shoulder length hair was a tangled mess and it was clear he hadn't shaved in a long, long time. Dean quickly looked the man over and saw that he was wearing only an oversized grey t-shirt and boxer shorts. No wonder the guy was shivering.

Dean froze when the man reached out and touched him, one ice-cold hand resting on his arm.

"D-D'n," the man said almost reverently and the hunter nodded.

"Yeah," he said gently, "My name's Dean. This guy behind me is Gordon."

"Y-you came," the man said, his voice so quiet that Dean had to strain to hear him.

"C'mon Winchester," Gordon ground out from behind Dean, "Get him up so we can get out of here."

"Can you stand?" Dean asked; the man had not moved, had made no attempt to stand as the other prisoners had, waiting impatiently at the front of their cages to be let out.

The man lowered his gaze and raised his other hand to grip Dean's arm. Realizing what the man wanted, Dean stood up from his crouch slowly, brining the man up with him.

"You need some help?" Caleb called out to Dean.

"Sure," he commented since Gordon wasn't doing anything.

The other hunter squeezed into the cage alongside Dean- pushed Gordon out in the process- and took hold of one of the man's arms. The man turned his head to look at Caleb and Dean could have sworn he saw a look of recognition cross his thin features.

"Okay," Dean muttered, "Here we go."

With the two hunters supporting him, the man took a step forward and whimpered, favouring his right leg. Dean glanced down and saw that the limb clearly was not working properly, the man almost dragging it as he attempted to walk.

"Can you hold your leg up?" he asked and the young man lifted the right leg a couple of inches off the floor.

Gripping the man's arms tighter, Dean and Caleb were able to help him out of the cage without causing him unnecessary pain. The two hunters guided him to the steps and helped lower him onto one of the lower ones.

"What's your name?" Caleb asked, leaning down so that he was more or less eye level with the man.

"S-Sam," he answered and Dean's heart skipped a beat.

No, its a coincidence. He doesn't even look like Sammy.

Dean turned and walked over to Bobby and Tanner to see what their next plan of action would be.

"D'n!" all eyes turned to the man sitting on the stairs and Dean frowned.

"Don't worry, Sam," he said, "We'll get you to your family."

The young man shook his head and struggled to stand. Luckily Caleb was still with him and helped him up. Dean heard his fellow hunter murmur something to the distraught man but the guy clearly wasn't listening.

Not wanting to stress the man out more than he already was, Dean went back to him.

"What's wrong?" he asked in a kindly tone.

"Wh-where's Dad?" the man asked and Dean's mouth gaped open.

"Sam?" Caleb said, "Do you remember what happened to you?"

"Dean," Sam said forcefully, "Where's Dad?"

"Was your father here with you?" Caleb tried, thinking that the young man was confused.

Dean heard Sam give a breathy sigh that turned into a hacking cough. Caleb rubbed the man's back roughly until the fit passed and Sam looked up at Dean with red-rimmed eyes.

"I'm Sam," he said, "Sam Winchester."

Dean took a step back, "No."

This wasn't right. This wasn't Sam. This wasn't his baby brother. The guy was just delusional.

Caleb swore quietly when Sam faltered and he helped the young man sit back down; his energy depleted.

"What's going on?" Bobby stepped over to the two younger hunters, leaving Tanner and Gordon.

"He… he says he's Sam," Dean muttered.

"What?" Bobby asked incredulously.

"Bobby," Sam whispered, "Bobby Singer."

The grizzled hunter's eyebrows rose in astonishment. He didn't think anyone had called him by his last name since he'd come down here. How did that fellow know his name? Unless...

Dean watched Bobby approach Sam, squinting at the young man's face.

"If yer Sam Winchester," he said, "What kind of car does Dean drive?"

"A… Chevy… 67' Impala," the young man answered.

Dean's eyes bugged out of his head.

He knew about his baby. Maybe he really was Sammy. But if that was true and it was his brother sitting on the stairs before him than that meant… oh God… had he been here the entire time?

Dean felt bile rise in his throat even as tears welled up in his eyes. This was unbelievable.

"S-Sammy," Dean whispered, swallowing thickly.

The young man nodded his head once, the ghost of a smile forming on his lips.

Dean took a closer look at the young man and felt like crying, happy and sad at the same time.

He felt deeply ashamed that he had not recognized his brother from the start.

"I'm s-sorry, Sammy," Dean apologized and sat down beside him, carefully wrapping his arms around his brother.

"Y-you're here now," Sam breathed and went limp.

For a second, Dean panicked.

"Sam?!" Dean said his brother's name fearfully and felt Bobby's hand on his shoulder.

"He's alright Dean," the grizzled hunter assured him, "He's just drained."

Dean pulled back and realized that his brother was still breathing although his eyes were closed.

"Sorry to interrupt this family reunion," Gordon drawled, "But we still need to clean the mess we made upstairs."

"I can take these people to a hospital," Tanner spoke up, "And deal with the vamps."

"Thanks," Bobby said and helped Dean and Caleb carefully pick Sam up, marvelling at how little the young man seemed to weigh.

Gordon and Tanner headed upstairs, the remaining prisoners following them.

The trio of hunters carried their burden up the stairs slowly, trying not to jostle Sam and injure him further. Once they reached the first floor, the light illuminated Sam's injuries. Dean saw that both of his brother's arms were covered in bite marks- both old and new- and cringed in sympathy.

Dean allowed Bobby to fish the Impala's keys from the pocket of his leather jacket and the grizzled hunter opened the trunk, grabbing a pile of blankets and putting them in the Chevy's backseat. As gently as possible, Dean and Caleb lowered Sam onto the blankets.

Manoeuvring Sam into a more comfortable position, Dean gasped when he caught sight of Sam's injured leg; the reason he was limping. The back of Sam's thigh, about halfway to his knee, was marred by an ugly scar. The scar tissue was thick and knotted, pink and white, and although it was clearly not recent, still looked like it would be painful.

"Dean? Son, you alright?" Bobby's voice jolted Dean into awareness and he glanced up, "Yer pale as a sheet. What happened? Is Sam okay?"

"Look," Dean whispered and pointed out the horrific injury.

Bobby swore out loud, his choice of phrase much coarser than his usually language.

"They hamstrung him," the grizzled hunter spat.

Dean gulped, "But… they didn't do that to anyone else."

Bobby scratched his head through the top of his baseball cap, "We'll have to ask Sam about it when he wakes up. Right now we just gotta get him home."

Dean nodded. He could ask Sam all the questions he wanted once his brother was far away from this place.

Climbing into the driver's seat, Dean glanced back at his unconscious brother, "Is he going to be alright back there?"

"He's going to have to be," Bobby answered from the passenger's seat, "We've got a long drive ahead of us."

Dean nodded and bit his lip, hoping that Sam would be able to take the almost eighteen hour ride back to Sioux Falls.

"I have a friend in Rapid City who owes me one," Bobby commented as they passed Tanner and Gordon, coaching the victims on what to say to the police and doctors that wouldn't sound completely insane. Caleb was already at his truck, ready to help transport the seven survivors to the nearest hospital.

"She has a private clinic that was being haunted by a poltergeist a few years ago," Bobby continued, "She told me I could come in anytime for care free of charge."

Okay then, Dean thought as he waved goodbye to his fellow hunters- Gordon not returning the gesture- so Sam has to make it through a fourteen hour ride.

_SPN_

Felicity sniffed the air experimentally. There was the strong scent of fire on the warm, dry breeze. She accelerated the motorcycle and gravel spit out from underneath its twin wheels. She was glad to be home.

Although she always enjoyed visiting Luther and his nest, she always missed her mate. There certainly was no place like home.

The night was clear; the dark sky dotted with diamond-bright stars. Felicity smiled. She loved travelling by night. Even though the sun would not cause a vampire to burst into flames or turn to dust like in the movies or in books, it still burned their skin badly and was to be avoided as much as possible.

Coming over the rise of the hill, Felicity gasped and slammed on the brakes. The Tranquility Motel was gone, nothing more than charred remains.

"No," she whispered and sped down towards her home.

It was clear the the fire department and police had been on scene but now they were long gone. The parking lot was deserted.

Climbing down from her motorcycle, Felicity took off her helmet and stared wide-eyed at the carnage laid out before her.

Heedless of the smouldering ruins, she stepped lightly into the rubble, ash billowing out around her ankles as she walked.

Had her family fled? If so, where were they now?

Sniffing daintily at the air, Felicity caught the coppery tang of blood, but not human blood.

Hissing in anger, Felicity turned around, surveying the area. The second floor had collapsed, only the metallic bits remaining- doorknobs, taps from bathtubs and sinks- to glitter dully in the moonlight.

Hunters. Hunters had found her family and murdered them.

The vampire let out a cry of sadness and rage. Everyone was gone. There weren't even bodies left.

Who? Who would do such a thing? Felicity wondered, seeing red.

She would find out who had killed her mate and the rest of her family and make them suffer.

Crouching down, Felicity breathed in deeply, trying to catch a scent.

She discovered five distinct human smells that didn't come from any of the prisoners. Felicity closed her eyes, committing each unique aroma to memory.

Opening her eyes again, the vampire recognized the scent of her boy, the one only she was allowed to touch, mixed in with three of the new scents. Following the trail, Felicity walked out into the parking lot as the three hunter's scents became two and disappeared as they had driven away. The other hunters had taken the majority of prisoners with them.

Why not her boy? Felicity wondered, tapping one shapely finger against her chin.

She recalled looking through the young man's duffel bag the day they had caught him, taking anything of value. She had peered at his passport and driver's license, examining his picture and knew she had read his name as well.

But what was it?

It had been so long ago and Felicity- nor any of the other vampires- bothered calling their food by their names. Only once the prisoner was turned, would the rest of the family bother with actually learning his or her name. In an odd way it symbolized a sort of rebirth. The prisoner was unknown until they became a member of the nest and earned the right to have their name given back to them. Would someone name a pig or cow that they were ultimately going to lead to the slaughter? No.

What was the boy's name?

Felicity had a feeling it has started with an 'S'. She paced around the parking lot, the desire to recall the name even greater than her grief.

"Samuel!" she exclaimed, "An old name."

His surname was troubling though, she knew it had been unusual, something not heard everyday.

Closing her eyes, Felicity picture the young man.

Samuel… Samuel…

Winchester. That was it. Samuel Winchester. The son of the infamous John Winchester, how could she forget?

Felicity grinned toothily.

She would follow Samuel Winchester's scent and make his rescuers wish he had never found him at all.

**Author's Note:**

**1. Thanks to cold kagome, AmaraRae, SPN Mum, BranchSuper, shahenaaz08, sarah, SamDeanLover28, lillelouis, judyann, babyreaper, Tiny wabbit, MysteryMadchen, L.A.H.H, and Guest for reviewing.**

**2. Thanks to everyone who alerted, followed, favourited.**

**3. Yay! Sam's been rescued! But things are never that easy for the Winchesters. Felicity is still alive and now she's out for blood. Please leave a review! **


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

**Author's Note: Sorry folks. I posted this last night but wasn't completely satisfied with it so I deleted that chapter. Here's the revised chapter. Hope you like it.**

Sam didn't wake up once during the drive to Rapid City. Dean's worry grew the longer Sam remained unconscious.

"Why's he still sleeping, Bobby? Do you think he's going to be okay?" he asked as they crossed into the city limits.

"Take the offramp here," the grizzled hunter grunted, "He's practically skin and bone, Dean. And he's been a vampire chew-toy for God knows how long. Sleep is the best thing for him right now. At least until we can get him to the clinic."

Dean nodded. Of course. It just scared him to see Sam so still. The moment he'd found out that his brother had never arrived at his destination- Stanford University- all Dean could think about were worst case scenarios. His imagination had been so busy showing him pictures of his brother's battered corpse lying in a ditch at the side of the road like so much garbage, that now that he knew Sam was alive, he still couldn't help but thinking that he was going to lose him.

"Follow this road," Bobby spoke up, startling Dean from his morbid thoughts, "I'll let you know when to turn."

Dean glanced at his prone brother in the rearview mirror before returning his attention to his driving.

Bobby had called Tanner and Caleb to check up on how they were getting along with the other survivors. The hunters had taken the victims to Reno- only a four hour or so drive from Elko- and had them checked into a hospital there. The story of a cult kept the authorities satisfied and prevented the victims' next stop being the psych ward. Gordon had remained at the Tranquility Motel to clean up the bodies.

"Keep goin' down this road," Bobby said now, sitting up a little straighter in his seat as they approached their destination. He had called his doctor friend an hour ago, telling her to be ready for their arrival.

The dirt road that Dean was now driving on had neatly trimmed trees on either side, creating a green canopy over the Impala. Although gravel crunched under the classic Chevy's tires, not flew up to ping off the undercarriage or ding the paint on the sides.

Dean stepped on the brake when the car rounded a curve and he saw an old wrought-iron gate separating the road from the entrance to the clinic.

"What's the matter?" Bobby asked, jerking forward when the car suddenly stopped.

"Uh… a squirrel ran in front of the car," Dean muttered and continued driving. Bobby glanced suspiciously at the younger man but said nothing.

They passed the front gates and Dean couldn't help but stare at the Victorian-style mansion that greeted them.

"I thought you said we were going to a clinic," Dean commented, "Not the house on Haunted Hill."

Bobby rolled his eyes, "Louise inherited this place from her grandmother and she turned it into a clinic."

Dean looked skeptical but nodded. He didn't care if this Louise person's clinic was functioning out of the back of a van, as long as she could help Sam.

The road went from being comprised of dirt and gravel to being paved with cobblestones- dark brown and cracked but clearly maintained otherwise because there was not a weed to be found poking up between the imperfections in the stone- and curved around the front of the mansion in a half-moon shape. A fountain sat in the bell of the curving driveway; the copper figure of a maiden endlessly pouring water from a bucket stood on a pedestal above the fountain's circular base. Dean stared towards the mansion itself and saw a half-dozen wide concrete steps led up to the stained-wood front doors. Twin ovular panels of frosted glass- the height of a man- were set into the doors and Dean could see a warm glow beaming diffuse light from each pane.

"We're going around back," Bobby's voice startled Dean and he nodded, following the new asphalt service road that ran along the side of the mansion.

As he followed Bobby's instructions, Dean couldn't help but look at his brother's prone form in the backseat once again, wondering if they should wake him up.

"Keep yer eyes on the road!" Bobby exclaimed, grabbing the Impala's steering wheel to prevent the car from driving onto the lawn.

"Sorry," Dean muttered and tore his attention away from his brother. Bobby glared at him for a moment before shaking his head.

The rear of the mansion had been converted into an employee parking lot. A large black square of asphalt covered what used to be the back garden. Dean pulled up as close to the doors as possible. He barely noticed when the doors opened and a woman with grey hair and a young man around his brother's age stepped out to meet them. Bobby got out of the Impala and went to greet them. Dean remained where he was. He unbuckled himself and turned around in his seat to look again at Sam's unconscious form. Carefully, Dean reached out towards Sam, his hand coming to rest against his sibling's chest. Dean didn't say anything. He just waited as he felt his brother breathe in and out.

Jumping slightly when Bobby opened the driver's side door, Dean turned to face Bobby.

"Son, this is Louise Guthrie," the grizzled hunter pointed to the woman standing beside him, "And her boy, Jason."

"Hello Dean," the woman greeted. She still hadn't seen Sam yet.

"I don't think Sammy's going to wake up anytime soon," Dean said apologetically, feeling guilty.

Louise nodded and told her son to get a stretcher from inside the house.

Dean got out of the front seat and opened the passenger door, blocking Sam from view.

"Son," Bobby called and laid a calloused hand on Dean's shoulder, "Let Louise have a look at him."

Dean glared at the older hunter for a moment before acquiescing and stepping out of the way. Louise came forward and put her hands to her mouth in shock.

"What happened to him?" she asked, her eyes wide with shock. Dean looked over the woman's shoulder and although Sam's injuries were not wholly visible yet, it was clear that his brother was extremely thin, his hair was tangled and dirty, his beard making him look like some homeless man.

"Ran amuck of a nest o' vampires," Bobby answered and Louise gasped.

"I thought Bobby told you about the supernatural," Dean said and shouldered the woman out of the way, rather rudely.

"O-Only ghosts," Louise answered, her tone shocked.

Dean glanced at Bobby and the older man shrugged.

"Ah, here's Jason," the grizzled hunter exclaimed as the young man appeared, pushing a stretcher ahead of him.

Bobby and Louise stood back as Dean reluctantly allowed Jason to help him get Sam out of the back of the Impala and onto the gurney. Jason, short but built compactly, listened to Dean's directions and followed them exactly.

Sam looked even more pale against the starched white hospital linens on the stretcher and Dean frowned. He grabbed Sam's hand and walked alongside his brother as Jason easily- too easily- pushed the gurney towards the doors.

Dean barely looked at his surroundings- his gaze fixed on his brother's drawn face- as Jason pushed the stretcher down the halls of the mansion.

"Sammy?" Dean called to his brother, "Sam, wake up man. Please."

Sam continued to sleep.

Jason looked at Dean sympathetically and turned the gurney into a room.

"Can you help me get him onto the bed?" As though Jason had to ask. Dean grabbed his brother under his arms while Jason took his legs. Working together, the young two young men transferred Sam onto the hospital bed.

Louise bustled into the room, making a bee-line right for Sam. She put on a stethoscope and placed the diaphragm against Sam's chest. Dean frowned, knowing that at any moment he would be asked to leave the room.

To his surprise though, Louise only spoke to her son.

"Is Sammy going to be okay?" Dean asked, worriedly. Sam was so thin and pale, so sick looking, that Dean was afraid they'd found him too late.

"I'm starting him on IV fluid," Louise explained, "He's dehydrated."

Dean nodded, "Okay."

"I'm also going to take a better look at these wounds," she continued, indicating the bites on Sam's arms.

"His leg…" Dean managed to choke out, thinking of the ugly injury on Sam's thigh.

Louise nodded, her lips pursed.

"Why don't you go down to the kitchen and get a cup of coffee and something to eat? On this floor, at the end of the hall and to the right," she suggested, sounding genuinely concerned for Dean's wellbeing as she was for Sam's.

Dean jumped when he felt a hand on his arm and turned to see Bobby peering at him.

"C'mon son," the older hunter murmured, "Sam's in good hands."

Dean was reluctant to leave his brother- it had been so long since he'd seen Sam- that he didn't want to take his eyes off him for a moment.

"Let Louise do her work," Bobby pressed and guided Dean out the door.

Sighing, Dean followed the older man down the hallway towards the kitchen. As they walked, Dean took in his surroundings. The floors were hardwood with a long red carpet running down the length of the corridor. The walls were covered in antique floral-print wallpaper. Instead of overhead lights, old-fashioned sconces provided illumination.

Bobby pushed open a wooden door on the right just as they got to the end of the hall and ushered Dean into the kitchen. The room was a mixture of modern and antique. The floor was black slate, the cupboards a stained oak. The counters and the top of the island were black-and white-speckled granite. Both the double-door refrigerator and dishwasher were stainless steel.

Dean sat down at the island and put his head in his hands while Bobby prepared the coffee maker.

"What's eating you?" Bobby asked as he sat down across from the younger man. Dean didn't look up, his gaze fixed on the granite island-top.

"I should have known he was gone, Bobby," Dean murmured, "I should have checked in on him."

Bobby sighed, "Well, you didn't."

Dean glared at the granite angrily, "Do you think Sam was really there… the whole time?"

"I don't know," the grizzled hunter admitted, "You'll have to ask him when he wakes up."

Dean nodded, then, "He's going to wake up, right? We weren't too late, were we?"

"Sam's strong," Bobby assured Dean, "He's just been through a hell of a lot and needs time to recover."

Dean sucked in a shaky breath, "I didn't recognize him… I didn't know it was him… he tried to tell me and I… I thought he was crazy or something…"

Bobby rolled his eyes and stood as the coffee maker finished percolating.

"Don't go beating yourself up about that, Dean," he said as he pulled a couple of mugs down from the cupboards as though he owned the place, "I didn't know it was Sam either."

Dean didn't feel much better. He should have been able to recognize his own damn brother!

"Here," Bobby shoved a mug of black coffee at him, "Drink this and shut up."

Dean lifted his head and scowled but did as Bobby told him. After nearly ten long minutes of silence, Dean spoke up.

"So, uh, this place is pretty Ritzy, eh?" Dean muttered and Bobby chuckled.

Before the older hunter could say anything, the kitchen door opened and Jason stepped inside, "Do you mind if I join you?"

"Nope," Bobby rumbled even though Dean would have liked to be left alone. The young man nodded and grabbed himself a cup of coffee before sitting on Bobby's other side.

The three men fell into silence, Dean feeling slightly awkward.

"What's your Mom's story?" Jason looked surprised Dean had spoken.

He shrugged, "She got this place when my grandmother passed. We started fixing it up but all this weird shit started happening… we'd open the front doors in the morning and the paint cans would be open… paint everywhere… tools went missing… no contractor wanted to work on the house after awhile."

"Than Bobby showed up," Dean smiled. Jason shook his head.

"No. Dad thought it was some teens or a bum or something so one night… he decided to stay here and catch whomever was doing this in the act…"

Dean frowned. He had a feeling he knew where this was going.

"The next morning, Mom and I came to check up on Dad… We found him… This is only the first floor but there's this spiral staircase with a chandelier in the entrance and, well… that's where we found him… Dad had somehow gotten up to the chandelier and hung himself… at least that's what we thought at first."

"I'm sorry," Dean murmured.

"It was a long time ago… I was only a kid," Jason shrugged but Dean could tell by the younger man's expression that it still hurt.

"The activity didn't stop… it got worse after Dad died," the young man continued, "And then one day the poltergeist tried to kill me."

Dean listened as Jason described how a young woman in Victorian-era clothing had appeared to him while he was playing on the spiral staircase in the house and had encouraged him to climb up onto the railing. The poltergeist moved a rope that had been used to hold scaffolding for the painters, towards the young boy and wrap around his neck, the other end attaching as if by magic to the chandelier in the middle of the ceiling.

"There'd be no possible way I was tall enough to reach that thing by myself," Jason muttered and shuddered at the memory, "No way Dad could have reached it either."

"Anyway, it was around lunchtime and I guess Mom had been calling me for a while," he continued, "And she found me like that. The noose around my neck, standing balanced on the railing. The ghost was holding me up, getting ready to shove me I guess… but then Mom screamed and the ghost vanished. Lucky for me I fell backwards and hit the stairs. I didn't choke to death."

Bobby stood up and took Dean's empty coffee cup, filling it again.

"But that was when we knew it wasn't some prank or anything," Jason told Dean, "Mom had seen her too."

"I read about his father's death in the paper and thought it sounded fishy," Bobby jumped in, "They described the reason Richard had been in the house… the destroyed and missing tools and such…"

"Turns out Grandma had had a sister who was jealous of her," Jason finished, "She was angry at my grandmother because the family disowned her and she would receive nothing when her parents died. She was killed in an accident here on the grounds of the house and never left."

Dean frowned, "Why didn't she attack your grandmother then?"

"Oh, Grandma never stayed here. After her parents died, she had the house locked up and moved into the city."

Dean nodded, "So the ghost only became active once your Mom opened this place up again. Must have been angry that her grandniece got this place."

Gulping down a mouthful of coffee, Dean frowned.

"Why'd your Mom decide to turn this place into a clinic? I mean, after what happened to your Dad…"

Jason shrugged, "She didn't want the bad memories to… infect this place. It really is a cool house and everything. Mom didn't want to work in hospitals anymore… said she couldn't take the sterile environment and wanted to have a place that people could come to that didn't feel so institutional."

"Its definitely _not_ like any hospital I've ever been to," Dean commented and Jason smiled.

_W_

An hour later the kitchen door opened again and Louise stepped inside. Dean and Bobby looked up expectantly.

"Can we see Sam now?" the older brother asked and the doctor nodded.

"How is he?" Bobby asked, moving nearly as quickly as Dean as the younger man practically shot out of his seat as soon as Louise had indicated permission.

"He's still resting," she said as they walked down the hall; Dean trying his hardest not to run ahead of everyone.

"But he'll be okay, right? Right?" Dean asked urgently, praying for good news.

"Your brother is very weak," Louise said gravely, "He has lost a lot of blood."

Dean felt his hope shrink. They were too late. Sam was too sick. He wasn't going to make it.

Louise opened the door to Sam's room and Dean was immediately at his brother's side. During the intervening hour and a half Dean had been away from him, Sam had been changed out of his old clothes and into the conventional hospital gown. He had one IV line in the back of his left hand providing him much needed nutrients, another in his wrist giving him blood. A heart monitor, with its sensors attached to Sam's chest, pinged steadily.

Sam still looked pale and fragile.

"S-Sammy," Dean murmured and reached out a hand to touch his brother, pausing before he could do so and turned to look at Louise.

"I heard a crackle in your brother's lungs and put him on a broad-spectrum antibiotic," she said, "I'm worried its pneumonia. I sent some a sample out for testing."

Dean's heartbeat increased with fear.

"Wh-what about Sam's leg? Can you fix it?"

Louise looked crestfallen, "I'm afraid there's nothing I could do. The injury is too old to repair the damage."

Dean paled visibly. Bobby rushed forward and guided him to a chair set out for visitors- dark carved wood and red cushions- before glancing concernedly at the doctor.

"Sam's going to be lame for the rest of his life?" the grizzled hunter asked, sharing Dean's fear.

"Hopefully with physical therapy, your brother will be able to walk properly again," Louise told the hunters, trying to find something positive in all of this.

Dean though, didn't share the doctor's optimism.

All he could think of was how his brother's life was ruined because he hadn't thought to check up on Sam.

I'm a terrible brother. Sam must hate me. _I'd _hate me.

Dean reached out and finally touched his brother, laying his hand on top of Sam's.

"I'll leave you alone now," Louise told Dean and Bobby quietly, "Let me know if Sam's condition changes."

The grizzled hunter nodded. Dean didn't look up. Louise closed the door as she walked out of the room.

"It's gonna be alright, son," Bobby murmured and clapped a hand on Dean's shoulder.

The younger hunter turned red-rimmed eyes upwards and Bobby grimaced, wishing he could say something more.

All they could do was wait until Sam woke up.

_SPN_

Felicity allowed her grief to overflow once she reached Luther's nest in Manning, Colorado. Although the drive was out of the way, she needed to let her oldest friend know what had happened to her family. Trying to hold back her cries of anguish, Felicity told the others what had happened in Elko. Kate- Luther's mate- hugged Felicity comfortingly as she struggled to pull herself together.

"Let us help you!" Kate exclaimed, "I don't know what I'd do without Luther. Those hunters have to pay for what they did to your family."

Felicity smiled sadly, "I don't know, honey. They managed to kill everyone. I wouldn't want to put you in danger."

"You said they split up though," Luther added thoughtfully.

Felicity nodded, "Three went in the direction of Reno while two took the boy east."

Luther's expression turned smug, "Two hunters. That's nothing, Felicity. Especially if they're not expecting us."

The vampire smiled gratefully.

Although Kate and Luther didn't understand Felicity's fascination with this boy she kept talking about, they were more than happy to help get revenge for the death of her nest. Because of hunters, their kind was nearly wiped out completely and any chance to get back at them was a win.

Ideas were proposed and plans laid out. Soon Felicity and a half-dozen members of Luther's nest were on the road, Rapid City as their destination.

_SPN_

"I'm sorry, Sammy," Dean murmured to his brother, "I thought… I didn't know… Damn it! I would have looked for you if I'd known."

Sam remained asleep. Only the heart monitor answered Dean.

Sighing, Dean squeezed his brother's thin hand and sat back in his chair. Bobby stood on the other side of the bed, frowning down at the young man who continued to sleep.

"It wasn't your fault you know," the grizzled hunter said.

Dean shook his head, "I should have been there for him… that night. Instead I just stood there listening to Dad ream him and then Sam left… I didn't even tell him goodbye or good luck. I didn't trust myself to say anything."

The older brother gave a bitter chuckle, "I was so angry at Sam. Almost as angry as Dad at first… but it got better. That doesn't excuse me. I shouldn't have let Sam go out alone. I could have driven him to school. It was my job to take care of him and I didn't do that. I let him leave an get caught by vampires."

Bobby took off his baseball cap and scratched his head, "You couldn't have known, Dean."

Dean sighed. Even after his anger had waned and he had begun to realize that maybe school was the best thing for Sam- at least he didn't have to listen to his little brother and their father argue anymore- he still had failed in his job to look out for him. Sure, Dean thought he was giving Sam his privacy and all that shit, it wouldn't have killed him to pick up the phone and see how Sam was doing.

Bobby sighed. He couldn't bear to see Dean beat himself up like this. Sure, Dean hadn't called or checked up on Sam but the kid wasn't exactly a child anymore. He had been ready to go to the other end of the country for school. What would have Dean done if Sam had received his higher education and got himself an apple pie job and apple pie life? Bobby knew that Dean would probably have called Sam every day to make sure his brother was still breathing. Bobby knew that Sam was very independent, had been since he'd first met the boy, and he might have spurned Dean's attempts to look after him. Bobby had the distinct idea that Sam didn't need Dean as much as Dean needed Sam. Or at least, Sam might have thought he didn't need Dean, Bobby corrected as he watched the older brother brush the sleeping young man's bangs away from his eyes and murmur comfortingly.

Should have, could have, would have…

Bobby was as much to blame for not realizing Sam was in danger as Dean was. John had nearly talked his ear off after Sam left, venting his anger and frustration to the grizzled hunter. Bobby knew Sam was supposed to be at school but he had never bothered to call the youngest Winchester either.

"What matters is that you're here for Sam now," Bobby told Dean, "So you can start making up for four years of neglect."

The older brother didn't smile, Bobby's attempt at dark humour falling flat.

"I just wish he'd wake up," Dean said quietly.

Bobby nodded. He knew how the younger man felt. It felt like the longer Sam stayed oblivious to the world, the less likely he was to ever open his eyes again. Although Bobby had assured Dean that his brother would be okay after some much needed medical attention, the grizzled hunter wasn't so sure of that himself. Sam was receiving blood, which would help him immensely but the suspicious crackling in his lungs- pneumonia, Louise thought- was troubling. Men and woman a lot healthier than Sam died from pneumonia.

Bobby glanced down at Sam as he thought. The young man's long hair was dirty and tangled, his face all sharp edges and hollows. Sam's arms rested on either side of his body, wrapped in clean white bandages from wrist to elbow. From where Bobby was standing he could see an old scar on Sam's neck, a bite mark that stood out starkly against the pale skin.

If Sam had indeed been the vampires' prisoner for as long as he thought, it was new to Bobby. Vampires usually only kept their victims a few days- maybe a week- at the most before draining them dry and moving on to fresher prey. Bobby had never heard of the monsters stock-piling humans for food. Both curious and disturbed by the idea, Bobby hoped that Sam could tell them more about what had happened if- when- he woke up.

Bobby told chastised himself for being so damn negative.

Sam was strong and stubborn- always had been- and he sure as hell wasn't going to just slip away without getting the chance to tell his brother off for all Dean's mothering.

_SPN_

Deanstartled when his fingers brushed against Sam's brow and felt a frightening amount of heat pouring off his brother's skin.

"Bobby!" Dean nearly shouted at the old hunter sitting on the other side of the bed, reading a magazine, "Get Louise! Sam's got a fever!"

The veteran hunter didn't even bother nodding, he simply dropped the magazine and ran from the room.

"It's okay, Sammy," Dean murmured, placing his palm on his brother's forehead, "It's going to be alright."

Minutes later Louise rushed into the room, followed by Bobby and Jason. The doctor checked the heart monitor and then pulled an ear thermometer out.

"Hm," she murmured, as the device beeped, its reading finished, "Its quite high. Strange..."

"What's strange? How bad is it?" Dean asked urgently, feeling useless.

"I checked Sam's temperature when he came in but he didn't have a fever then," Louise explained, "This is good, Dean."

"How is a fever good?!" Dean exclaimed, glaring at the woman.

"It means that Sam's getting stronger," the doctor continued, "Before, his body was too weak to even increase its temperature."

Dean blinked in confusion.

"A fever is a body's way of trying to destroy whatever's causing illness," Jason repeated in laymen's terms, "The blood and nutrients Mom is giving Sam are giving him a boost of energy he didn't have before."

Louise nodded, "We should still try and break this, with Sam as weak as he is, a fever will be as harmful as it is helpful."

Dean watched as the doctor left the room, only to return with a syringe and insert the needle into Sam's IV line, depressing the liquid into the nutrients his brother was also receiving.

"Either Jason or I will come and check on Sam every half-hour to make sure his fever is still down," Louise told Dean and Bobby, tossing the empty needle in a yellow bucket by the door marked 'Biohazard Waste'.

Dean sat back down and peered concernedly at his brother. He was glad Sam was getting stronger- maybe that meant he'd wake up soon- but he was still worried. Now he had a fever to complicate things even more.

Dean frowned at the sweat beaded on his brother's pale brow and asked Bobby if he could find a cloth or something. The grizzled hunter came back a few minutes later, following a nurse into the room. Dean was slightly startled by the young woman's appearance- he had only thought Louise and Jason were here- and then he kicked himself for his stupidity. This place might look like a mansion but it was a hospital.

The nurse had a bowl of water and a white cloth in her hands, which Dean took gratefully.

"Let me know if you need anything else," she said and Dean nodded, setting the bowl on the bedside table and wringing out the cloth to place it on Sam's brow.

The nurse left and Dean raised an eyebrow at Bobby, "I'll say it again. This isn't like any hospital I've ever been to before."

The grizzled hunter chuckled and sat back down, "Louise usually doesn't take people with serious injuries or illnesses; those poor souls_ do_ belong in public hospitals. Normally this place sees patients recovering from their stays in regular hospitals."

Dean nodded. That made sense. It was only Louise and her son, plus a few other employees.

"They certainly give people their privacy," Dean commented, grateful not to have medical staff hovering over him and his brother.

Again, Bobby laughed, opening his magazine back up to continue reading.

_SPN_

Hours passed and still Sam remained unconscious. Louise did not seem too concerned though, stating that this rest was the best thing for Sam. It allowed his body time to rest and recover from its trauma.

Bobby tried to be optimistic as well but Dean was clearly frightened.

As night fell, the grizzled hunter somehow- it was an honest to God miracle- convinced Dean to leave his brother's side and take one of the visitor's rooms on the second floor of the mansion. Bobby himself took the room beside Dean's and climbed into bed, closing his eyes and hoping that the next day, the youngest Winchester would be opening his.

_SPN_

Dean sat on the made-up bed and stared around the visitor's room- specially set aside for the family members of patients- and dug his phone out of the pocket of his jacket. Dean knew it was a long-shot… a _really _long-shot but he scrolled down his contact list and hit the button that would connect him with his father's cell.

As expected- why would John pick up now- the voicemail came on and Dean sighed.

"We… we found Sammy," Dean choked out, "But he's… he's been hurt… Bobby and I are in Rapid City with him…"

Dean rattled off the address of the mansion before finishing, "If you get this message, you should come and see him… Sam, I mean…"

He closed his phone and fell back against the mattress of the four-post bed. Still holding his phone, Dean placed his arm across his eyes to block out the light. Sighing deeply, Dean closed his eyes and was asleep within moments.

_SPN_

Felicity smiled as she looked up at the green sign announcing she had arrived at Rapid City. She wasn't far now. The wind whipped through her blonde hair and she smiled, the convertible much faster than her motorcycle. And the driver hadn't tasted too bad at all. Soon she would find the hunters who had murdered her family and make them pay for their crime. Saliva flooded her mouth and her fangs slipped down in anticipation.

_SPN_

Sam woke slowly, groggy. His entire body ached but he couldn't remember why. He felt someone stroking his hair and his heart skipped a beat fearfully.

Dean. Sam remembered Dean and Bobby. They had found him. They had rescued him.

Sam smiled slightly and opened his eyes, looking up.

Felicity grinned, peering down at him, her fangs showing.

Sam gasped in shock and tried to back away from the vampire but he was too weak and collapsed against the mattress.

Before Sam could cry out, the vampire grabbed the cloth Dean had been using earlier from the bowl on the nightstand and stuffed it into his mouth. Felicity reached down and grabbed his shoulders, shoving him down onto the bed and pinning him. Eyes wide with fear, Sam saw that Felicity was not the only monster in the room. Two large male vampires Sam didn't recognize stood beside the bed as well.

"Otis," Felicity said to the vampire with a bright blond crew cut, "Get the IVs."

Sam cried out- the sound muffled- as the vampire named Otis ripped the IV lines free. Felicity and the second male vampire heaved Sam into a sitting position. Sam groaned as the room seemed to spin around him and he closed his eyes, certain he was going to pass out.

Suddenly, Sam was on his feet, his lame leg barely holding his weight. Felicity and Otis held Sam's arms tight to his body, the third vampire walking ahead of them.

Sam struggled weakly as he was dragged from the room and down the hall. The corridor wasn't completely dark but the wall sconces had been turned down so that they gave off dim orange glow, casting long shadows.

No, no, no, Sam begged, please leave me alone. Let me go!

"D'n!" Sam tried to call out to his brother but the name came out quiet and distorted because of the gag.

The vampire stalking ahead of them pushed the door to the employees' parking lot open and stepped outside, holding the door open from Felicity and Otis.

The wind was cold as it buffeted into Sam, the young man only wearing a hospital gown, and he shivered.

Felicity reached up with her free hand and ran her fingers through Sam's hair.

"Don't worry," she cooed, "Your friends will find you soon."

They stopped in front of a rag-top with its hood up, three more vampires greeting them.

"Is this him?" the only other female vampire asked, taking in Sam with a critical eye.

Felicity nodded and patted Sam's head, "I know he doesn't look like much."

One of the male vampires unlocked the convertible's trunk and Felicity and Otis pushed Sam towards it.

"No," Sam managed to say from around the gag, "Plea…"

Felicity sighed as though in good-natured exasperation, "You'll be fine."

With little problem, Felicity and Otis shoved Sam into the trunk and slammed the lid closed.

The vampire turned to Luther when he touched her shoulder, "Are you sure this is going to work?"

Felicity smiled, "I'm positive."

**Author's Note:**

**1. Thanks to nupinoop296, cold kagome, Hacked It Out and Fell, babyreaper, BranchSuper, murphy9202, sarah, SPN Mum, MysteryMadchen, WitlessTheSmall, lillelouis, doyleshuny, SamDeanLover28, L.A.H.H, Souless666 and Guest for reviewing.**

**2. Thank to everyone who alerted, favourited and alerted.**

**3. Reviews are love.**


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